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These countries have no reports of coronavirus cases. But can they be trusted?
North Korea, Lesotho and Turkmenistan are some of the handful of countries have no reported coronavirus cases.
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These countries have no reports of coronavirus cases. But can they be trusted?
Adrianna Rodriguez, USA TODAY
Published 10:10 a.m. ET May 6, 2020 | Updated 12:24 p.m. ET May 6, 2020
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The Coronavirus Task Force hasn't held a press briefing since late April, and now a White House official says it may be disbanded. Wochit
While countries including the United States struggle with the growing number of coronavirus cases, others have slowed them or haven’t reported a single one since the virus was first discovered in December.
New Zealand recorded its first day with no new coronavirus cases Monday, according to the country’s Ministry of Health. As of Wednesday, the country has 1,488 confirmed and probable cases and 21 deaths.
Meanwhile, the World Health Organization confirmed to USA TODAY that some countries haven’t reported any cases of COVID-19: Comoros, Lesotho, Turkmenistan, North Korea, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, Cook Islands, Nauru, Niue and Palau.
Are these countries impervious to the coronavirus?
The majority of nations that haven't reported any cases of the coronavirus are isolated island chains in the Pacific.
Dr. Thomas Tsai, assistant professor of health policy at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, said these islands were mostly spared the coronavirus because countries in Asia were quickly locked down, preventing travel and tourism.
However, that isn't the case for North Korea, Turkmenistan and Lesotho, which all share borders with countries that have reported coronavirus cases.
North Korea
Despite its 880-mile border with China, North Korea still claims to have had zero infections. China is North Korea’s biggest trading partner, accounting for as much as 95% of the country’s reported imports, according to 38 North, a website that tracks the country’s developments.
“It’s a near impossibility for them not have cases,” said Jung H. Pak, a former CIA analyst and North Korea expert with the Brookings Institution, a Washington think tank.
Pak and other experts say there's evidence of at least a small-scale COVID-19 outbreak in North Korea, a country where much of the population is already in poor health, the economy is crippled and the health system is abysmal.
The true picture of how widespread COVID-19 is inside North Korea will probably never be clear. North Korea is one of the world's most secretive, repressive and authoritarian countries in the world, and the regime's propaganda machine controls the flow of information.
Life in North Korea: What you are allowed to see
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People wearing face masks leave after laying flowers before the statues of late North Korean leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il on the occasion of the 108th birthday of late North Korean leader Kim Il Sung, known as the 'Day of the Sun', in Pyongyang on April 15, 2020. KIM WON JIN, AFP via Getty Images
People wearing face masks lay flowers before the statues of late North Korean leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il on the occasion of the 108th birthday of late North Korean leader Kim Il Sung, known as the 'Day of the Sun', in Pyongyang on April 15, 2020. KIM WON JIN, AFP via Getty Images
Workers of Songyo Knitwear Factory in Pyongyang produce masks for protection against the new coronavirus on Feb. 6, 2020. KIM WON-JIN, AFP via Getty Images
A health worker sprays disinfectant on the hands of a woman amid concerns over the COVID-19 coronavirus at an entrance of the Pyongchon District People's Hospital in Pyongyang on April 1, 2020. KIM WON JIN, AFP via Getty Images
People review information explaining the COVID-19 coronavirus at the Phyongchon District People's Hospital in Pyongyang, North Korea, April, 1, 2020. Jon Chol Jin, AP
A worker checks bottles of new disinfectant products on a production line at the Ryongaksan Soap Factory in Pyongyang on March 19, 2020. KIM WON JIN, AFP via Getty Images
A woman helps her daughter seen wearing a face mask in Pyongyang on Feb. 6, 2020. KIM WON-JIN, AFP via Getty Images
The afternoon sun casts the shadow of a man at Ryomyong street in Pyongyang, North Korea on Nov. 25, 2019. Dita Alangkara, AP
A picture released on November 25, 2019 by North Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) shows Kim Jong-Un, chairman of the Workers' Party of Korea and supreme commander of the armed forces of the DPRK, posing for a photo with members of a women's company under Unit 5492 of the Korean People's Army stationed at a remote seaside on the southwestern front, North Korea. KCNA via EPA-EFE
A man reads while waiting for a train as a statue of late North Korean President Kim Il Sung is seen in the background at Kaeson subway station in Pyongyang, North Korea, Saturday, Nov. 23, 2019. Dita Alangkara, AP
People walk past a shop that sells toys in Pyongyang, North Korea, Saturday, Nov. 23, 2019. Dita Alangkara, AP
A man buys cosmetics on Mothers' Day in Pyongyang, North Korea Saturday, Nov. 16, 2019. Cha Song Ho, AP
People celebrate Mothers' Day in Pyongyang, North Korea Saturday, Nov. 16, 2019. Jon Chol Jin, AP
This guide stands before the Samjiyon grand monument in Samjiyon, Sept. 13, 2019. The construction project ordered by leader Kim Jong Un, involves the rebuilding of the entire town of Samjiyon. The plan includes a museum of revolutionary activities, a winter sports training complex, processing plants for blueberries and potatoes which are two of the area's most important crops. ED JONES, AFP/Getty Images
In this undated photo provided on Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2019, by the North Korean government, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un rides a white horse to climb Mount Paektu, North Korea. Independent journalists were not given access to cover the event depicted in this image distributed by the North Korean government. The content of this image is as provided and cannot be independently verified. Korean language watermark on image as provided by source reads: "KCNA" which is the abbreviation for Korean Central News Agency. Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP
Students pose for photos in Chonji lake, or 'Heaven lake', as they visit the crater of Mount Paektu, near Samjiyon, Sept. 11, 2019. ED JONES, AFP/Getty Images
PedestriaPedestrians shield themselves from wind and rain brought by Typhoon Lingling, Sept. 7, 2019, in Pyongyang. The typhoon passed along South Korea’s coast has toppled trees, grounded planes and caused at least two deaths before making landfall. Jon Chol Jin, AP
A child drives a toy car across Kim Il Sung square in Pyongyang as North Korea marked the 71st anniversary of its foundation, with a public holiday, Sept. 9, 2019. ED JONES, AFP/Getty Images
A woman and her children wait for a bus at a stop on Mirae Scientist Street in Pyongyang, Sept. 12, 2019. Dita Alangkara, AP
North Koreans play at Munsu Waterpark in Pyongyang, July 17, 2019. Vincent Yu, AP
North Koreans play at Munsu Waterpark in Pyongyang, July 17, 2019. Vincent Yu, AP
Swimmers ride a water slide at the Munsu water park in Pyongyang, june 16, 2019. Ed Jones, AFP/Getty Images
Commuters ride a bus past the portraits of late North Korean leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il, on Kim Il Sung square in Pyongyang on June 18, 2019. Commuters ride a bus past the portraits of late North Korean leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il, on Kim Il Sung square in Pyongyang on June 18, 2019. Ed Jones, AFP/Getty Images
A conductor updates a newspaper stand in a subway train station in Pyongyang on June 18, 2019. Ed Jones, AFP/Getty Images
Tourists from China pose for photos before the Three Charters monument in Pyongyang June 14, 2019. Ordinary Chinese pay travel companies around $360.00 for a standard three-day trip to North Korea, arriving overland by train to tour the capital's highlights, from the Arch of Triumph to Kim Il Sung Square. Ed Jones, AFP/Getty Images
Swimmers rest beside a wave pool at the Munsu water park in Pyongyang, june 19, 2019. Ed Jones, AFP/Getty Images
A swimmer rides a water slide at the Munsu water park in Pyongyang, June 16, 2019. Ed Jones, AFP/Getty Images
Students hold cards to form pattern of smiling face of an old man during the mass game performance of "The Land of the People" at the May Day Stadium in Pyongyang, Friday, June 7, 2019. Jon Chol Jin, AP
Dancers play with rings during the mass game performance "The Land of the People" at the May Day Stadium in Pyongyang, Friday, June 7, 2019. Jon Chol Jin, AP
Girls in penguin costumes perform before the start of games during an International Children's Day event in Pyongyang, North Korea Saturday, June 1, 2019. Jon Chol Jin, AP
This undated picture released from North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) via KNS on June 1, 2019 shows North Korean leader Kim Jong Un posing with schoolchildren during his visit to the 250-mile Journey for Learning Schoolchildren's Palace in Jagang province in North Korea. KCNA VIA KNS, AFP/Getty Images
Farmers transplant rice seedlings in a field in Chongsan-ri, Kangso district, Nampho, North Korea, Sunday, May 12, 2019. (AP Photo/Cha Song Ho) ORG XMIT: OTK Cha Song Ho, AP
Korean People's Army (KPA) soldiers stand before a bride and groom during a wedding photo shoot at a park in Pyongyang on April 18, 2019. ED JONES, AFP/Getty Images
A bride and groom jump over a skipping rope as they pose during a wedding photo shoot at a park in Pyongyang on April 18, 2019. ED JONES, AFP/Getty Images
In a photo taken on April 11, 2018, a performance troupe from Russia arrives at the opening of the "April Spring Friendship Art Festival" outside a theatre in Pyongyang. ED JONES, AFP/Getty Images
A woman wiper her eyes as she waits to pay her respects before the statues of late North Korean leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il, as part of celebrations marking the anniversary of the birth of Kim Il Sung, known as the 'Day of the Sun', on Mansu hill in Pyongyang on April 15, 2019. ED JONES, AFP/Getty Images
The First Session of the 14th Supreme People's Assembly of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea meets at the Mansudae Assembly Hall in Pyongyang on April 11, 2019. AFP/Getty Images
Visitors tour the 21st Kimilsungia Festival opens marking the birthday anniversary of President Kim Il Sung at the Kimilsungia-Kimjongilia Exhibition Friday, April 12th, 2019, in Pyongyang, North Korea. Cha Song Ho, AP
A competitor interacts with a child on a road side during the annual 'Mangyongdae Prize International Marathon' in Pyongyang, April 7, 2019. KIM WON JIN, AFP/Getty Images
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un visits the Taesong Department Store in this photo released April, 8, 2019. KCNA VIA KNS, North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency via AFP/Getty Images
Competitors run past the Ryugyong hotel during the annual Pyongyang marathon, April 7, 2019. There were twice as many in this years race than last. as last year ran in the city's annual maratho KIM WON JIN, AFP/Getty Images
An airport worker walks across a bridge near Sunan international airport outside Pyongyang, March 12, 2019. ED JONES, AFP/Getty Images
This is the Fifth Meeting of Company Leaders and Political Instructors of the Korean People's Army (KPA) in Pyongyang, March 27, 2019. North Korean Central News Agency via EPA-EFE
People walk past a kiosk that sells snacks in Pyongyang, March 9, 2019. Kiosks like these are a common sight around the city, some selling food, drinks and even artificial flowers. Dita Alangkara, AP
A worker walks among stacks of food at Kumkhop Trading Co. food factory in Pyongyang, March 13, 2019. Dita Alangkara, AP
Girls wait for their turn to perform a dance during the election day at a polling station in Pyongyang, March 10, 2019. Dita Alangkara, AP
A couple pose as they have their wedding photo taken at an indoor swimming pool in Pyongyang, March 13, 2019. Dita Alangkara, AP
A boy holding a toy rifle stands before a taxi on a street in Pyongyang, March 11, 2019. ED JONES, AFP/Getty Images
A commuter stands before a copy of the Rodong Sinmun newspaper showing an image of North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un casting his ballot at the 14th Supreme People's Assembly elections, on display at a subway station in Pyongyang, March 11, 2019. ED JONES, AFP/Getty Images
Members of a Socialist Women's Union propaganda troupe perform a dance and music routine in front of the Ryugyong hotel in Pyongyang, March 9, 2019. ED JONES, AFP/Getty Images
Students participate in a "mass dance" as part of celebrations marking the birthday of late North Korean leader Kim Jong Il, known as the "Day of the Shining Star", in Pyongyang, Feb. 16, 2019. ED JONES, AFP/Getty Images
A man waters a pine tree on Munsu Hill as North Korea marks "tree-planting day" in Pyongyang, March 1, 2019. KIM WON-JIN, AFP/Getty Images
Students read the Rodong Sinmun newspaper coverage of North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un visiting Vietnam for a summit in Hanoi with President Donald Trump, on Kim Il Sung square in Pyongyang, Feb. 28, 2019. KIM WON JIN, AFP/Getty Images
A television screen shows a news announcer introducing coverage of a visit to Vietnam by North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un, on a street in Pyongyang, March 1, 2019. KIM WON JIN, AFP/Getty Images
In this picture taken on March 5, 2019 and released from North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un (C) waves to the crowd of welcomers uppon his arrival at the Pyongyang Station after the Vietnam summit. (Photo by KCNA VIA KNS / KCNA VIA KNS / AFP) / South Korea OUT / ---EDITORS NOTE--- RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE - MANDATORY CREDIT "AFP PHOTO/KCNA VIA KNS" - NO MARKETING NO ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS - DISTRIBUTED AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS / THIS PICTURE WAS MADE AVAILABLE BY A THIRD PARTY. AFP CAN NOT INDEPENDENTLY VERIFY THE AUTHENTICITY, LOCATION, DATE AND CONTENT OF THIS IMAGE --- / KCNA VIA KNS/AFP/Getty Images ORIG FILE ID: AFP_1E80FV KCNA VIA KNS, AFP/Getty Images
North Korean men ice fish on a frozen lake in Nampo, North Korea, Saturday, Feb. 2, 2019. Dita Alangkara, AP
North Korean women use a pedestrian crossing as the top of pyramid-shaped Ryugyong Hotel, a major landmark in the capital city, is seen in the background in Pyongyang, North Korea, Saturday, Feb. 2, 2019. Dita Alangkara, AP
North Korean men ride their bicycles in Nampo, North Korea, Saturday, Feb. 2, 2019. Dita Alangkara, AP
North Koreans men walk with a background of West Sea Barrage in Nampo, North Korea, Saturday, Feb. 2, 2019. West Sea Barrage was built in the 80s to separate Taedong River from the sea to prevent sea water intrusion into the river. Dita Alangkara, AP
North Koreans walk past a mural of their late leaders Kim Il Sung, left, and his son Kim Jong Il in Nampo, North Korea, Saturday, Feb. 2, 2019. Dita Alangkara, AP
North Korean men ride their bicycles past propaganda banners in Pyongyang, North Korea, Friday, Feb. 1, 2019. Dita Alangkara, AP
A North Korean woman works at Ryuwon Shoe Factory that specializes in sports footwear, in Pyongyang, North Korea, Friday, Feb. 1, 2019. Dita Alangkara, AP
A student sings in front of a green screen during a computer graphics class at Pyongyang Teachers' University, a teacher training college, in Pyongyang, North Korea, on Tuesday, Jan. 29, 2019. Dita Alangkara, AP
In this Monday, Jan. 28, 2019, file photo, a man rides an electric bike in Pyongyang, North Korea. Dita Alangkara, AP
Children walk past a pedestrian underpass near the Arch of Triumph in Pyongyang, Jan. 28, 2019. Dita Alangkara, AP
People cross a road in Pyongyang, Jan. 26, 2019. Dita Alangkara, AP
A man rides an electric bike in Pyongyang, Jan. 28, 2019. Dita Alangkara, AP
A man rides his bicycle as tree branches cast shadows onto an apartment building in Pyongyang, Jan. 28, 2019. Dita Alangkara, AP
A man is dwarfed by an apartment building in Pyongyang, Jan. 28, 2019. Dita Alangkara, AP
Attendees shout slogans during a rally in support of a new year's address by North Korean leader Kim Jong Un at Kim Il Sung square in Pyongyang, Jan. 4, 2019, Much of Kim's speech focused on North Korea's moribund economy, saying that improving people's lives was his top priority and tackling energy shortages was an urgent task. KIM WON JIN, AFP/Getty Images
Attendees shout slogans during a rally in support of a new year's address by North Korean leader Kim Jong Un at Kim Il Sung square in Pyongyang, Jan. 4, 2019 KIM WON JIN, AFP/Getty Images
Government officials perform mass rhythmic exercises while taking part in the first sports day of the new year at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang, Jan. 13, 2019. Jon Chol Jin, AP
Government officials perform mass rhythmic exercises while taking part in the first sports day of the new year at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang, Jan. 13, 2019. Jon Chol Jin, AP
Children jumprope and play folk games in front of the Victorious Fatherland Liberation War Museum in Pyongyang, Jan. 1, 2019. Jon Chol Jin, AP
A man walks past a sign for underground pedestrian crossing as people remove snow from the sidewalk in downtown Pyongyang, Dec. 17, 2018. Dita Alangkara, AP
Men read books at one of the reading rooms at The Grand People's Study House in in Pyongyang, North Korea, Wednesday, Dec. 19, 2018. Dita Alangkara, AP
North Koreans sit inside a trolley bus in downtown Pyongyang, North Korea Wednesday, Dec. 19, 2018. Dita Alangkara, AP
North Koreans wait for a trolley bus at a bus stop in downtown Pyongyang, North Korea Wednesday, Dec. 19, 2018. Dita Alangkara, AP
North Koreans walk on a pedestrian crossing bridge in downtown Pyongyang, North Korea Wednesday, Dec. 19, 2018. Dita Alangkara, AP
A North Korean woman talks on her mobile phone as she skates at an ice rink in Pyongyang, North Korea Tuesday, Dec. 18, 2018. Dita Alangkara, AP
North Korean men walk past portraits of their late leaders Kim Il Sung and his son Kim Jong Il in Pyongyang, North Korea Tuesday, Dec. 18, 2018. Dita Alangkara, AP
Korean People's Army soldiers leave after bowing before the statues of late North Korean leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il during National Memorial Day on Mansu Hill in Pyongyang on Dec. 17, 2018. North Korea is marking the seventh anniversary of the death of Kim Jong Il. Kim Won Jin, AFP/Getty Images
Pyongyang residents prepare to lay flowers at the statues of late North Korean leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il during National Memorial Day on Mansu Hill in Pyongyang on Dec. 17, 2018. AFP/Getty Images
This is a traffic officer in Pyongyang, Dec. 2, 2018. ED JONES, AFP/Getty Images
Commuters ride a tram in Pyongyang, Dec. 2, 2018 ED JONES, AFP/Getty Images
A man stands before the city skyline on a viewing deck of the Arch of Triumph in Pyongyang, Dec. 2, 2018. ED JONES, AFP/Getty Images
A bride and groom walk before the Juche tower and Taedong river on a foggy evening in Pyongyang, Dec. 2, 2018. ED JONES, AFP/Getty Images
Pedestrians walk past the portraits of late North Korean leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il across Kim Il Sung square in Pyongyang, Dec. 3, 2018 ED JONES, AFP/Getty Images
A man rides an electric bicycle as the Tower of the Juche Idea is silhouetted against the sunrise in Pyongyang, Oct. 27, 2018. Dita Alangkara, AP
Dancers perform during "The Glorious Country" mass games at May Day Stadium in Pyongyang, Oct. 25, 2018. Dita Alangkara, AP
A welcoming committee receives a delegation of performers and entertainers from China at Pyongyang International Airport, Nov. 2, 2018 KIM WON-JIN, AFP/Getty Images
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Cuba's President Miguel Diaz-Canel wave from a motorcade in Pyongyang, Nov. 4, 2018. North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency via AFP/Getty Images
North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un and Cuba's President Miguel Diaz-Canel review the honor guards while Kim's wife Ri Sol Ju and Diaz-Canel's wife Lis Cuesta Peraza walk behind during the Cuban leader's departure at Pyongyang airport, Nov. 6, 2018 North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Cuba's President Miguel Diaz-Canel wave from a motorcade in Pyongyang, Nov. 4, 2018.
Women cross a road in Pyongyang, Oct. 27, 2018. Dita Alangkara, AP
People cross a road in Pyongyang, Oct. 22, 2018. Dita Alangkara, AP
A van enters a tunnel on Pyongyang-Wonsan highway near the city of Wonsan, Oct. 22, 2018. Dita Alangkara, AP
Men smoke as they chat outside a supermarket in downtown Pyongyang, Oct. 21, 2018. Dita Alangkara, AP
A man looks out from a tram in Pyongyang, Oct. 22, 2018. Dita Alangkara, AP
North Koreans perform during an event, as part of the Inter-Korean summit, at the May Day stadium in Pyongyang Sept. 19, 2018 PYONGYANG PRESS CORPS / POOL, EPA-EFE
This is a general view of heaven lake and Mount Paektu in Mount Paektu, North Korea. POOL VIA GETTY IMAGES
South Korean President Moon Jae-in collects water from heaven lake at the bottom of Mount Paektu during a visit with his North Korean counterpart Kim Jong-un on Sept. 20, 2018 in Mount Paektu, North Korea. Kim and Moon meet for the Inter-Korean summit talks after the 1945 division of the peninsula, where they will discuss ways to denuclearize the Korean Peninsula. POOL VIA GETTY IMAGES
A view of the sunrise over the city of Pyongyang from Koryo hotel in Pyongyang, Sept. 19, 2018. PYONGYANG PRESS CORPS / POOL, EPA-EFE
South Korean President Moon Jae-in, right, and his wife Kim Jung-sook, second from right, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, second from left, and his wife Ri Sol Ju ride a cable car to Mount Paektu in North Korea. The two Korean leaders took to the road for the final day of their summit. POOL/Pyongyang Press Corps
Visitors look at bears at the Central Zoo in Pyongyang, North Korea, Saturday, Sept. 15, 2018. Kin Cheung, AP
A North Korean man looks through a device to study the vision of a dinosaur, at the Central Zoo in Pyongyang, North Korea, Saturday, Sept. 15, 2018. Kin Cheung, AP
North Korean bride and groom pose for a photo at the Central Zoo in Pyongyang, North Korea, Saturday, Sept. 15, 2018. Kin Cheung, AP
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un at the Kumsanpho Fish Pickling Factory with his wife Ri Sol Ju in South Hwanghae Province, North Korea, Aug. 8, 2018. North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency via AFP/Getty Images
North Korean athletes, headed by North Korean Vice Sports Minister Won Kil U, prepare to leave the Pyongyang international airport in Pyongyang to participate in the 18th Asian Games Aug. 10, 2018. Cha Song Ho, AP
Twenty year old instructor Kim Ju Yang holds a North Korean-made assault rifle as she poses for a portrait at the Meari shooting range in Pyongyang, July 29, 2018. The range offers customers the opportunity to shoot a number of North Korean and foreign-made firearms, most of which have been modified to fire .22 caliber ammunition which costs one US dollar per round. ED JONES, AFP/Getty Images
Tour guide Ju Hye Yon poses for a portrait on a viewing deck of the Arch of Triumph, before the city skyline of Pyongyang, June 16, 2018. ED JONES, AFP/Getty Images
Children perform with traditional instruments at the Children's Palace in Pyongyang, July 26, 2018.
The Children's Palace is a regular fixture on tour group schedules and features arts, dance, and musical performances by children. ED JONES, AFP/Getty Images
Students take part in a mass dance event marking the anniversary of the end of the Korean War on Kim Il Sung square in Pyongyang, July 27, 2018.
ED JONES, AFP/Getty Images
Students pose for a photo after paying their respects before the statues of late North Korean leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il on the anniversary of the end of the Korean War, at Mansu hill in Pyongyang July 27, 2018. ED JONES, AFP/Getty Images
A taxi driver waits for customers in Pyongyang, North Korea, Thursday, July 26, 2018. Dita Alangkara, AP
Girls dance in a studio at the Mangyongdae Children's Palace in Pyongyang, North Korea, Thursday, July 26, 2018. Mangyongdae Children's Palace is for talented school children to attend extracurricular classes and a popular place for tourists to visit during their stay in the capital. Dita Alangkara, AP
North Koreans spend their afternoon in an indoor swimming pool at Munsu Water Park during a hot day in Pyongyang, North Korea, Tuesday, July 24, 2018. Dita Alangkara, AP
A woman has her hair cut at a hair salon at Munsu Water Park during in Pyongyang, North Korea, Tuesday, July 24, 2018. Dita Alangkara, AP
A man carries a taxidermy falcon on the basket of his bicycle in Pyongyang, North Korea, Tuesday, July 24, 2018. Dita Alangkara, AP
Korean People's Army soldiers bow before the statues of late North Korean leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il, to mark the 24th anniversary of the death of Kim Il Sung, at Mansu Hill on in Pyongyang July 8, 2018. KIM WON-JIN, AFP/GETTY IMAGES
People leave flowers as they pay their respects in front of bronze statues of the late leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il at Munsu Hill in Pyongyang July 7, 2018. ANDREW HARNIK, AFP/GETTY IMAGES
A woman walks past a boy on the street in Pyongyang July 7, 2018. ANDREW HARNIK, AFP/GETTY IMAGES
Women clean a square outside the Kumsusan Palace of the Sun in Pyongyang July 7, 2018. ANDREW HARNIK, AFP/GETTY IMAGES
Animal specimens decorate a class room for biology at Mangyongdae Revolutionary School, an elite military educational establishment, in Pyongyang, June 21, 2018. The school provides basic all-round education but with a strong military emphasis as many of the pupils are expected to go on to senior careers in the military. DITA ALANGKARA, AP
People applaud as a seal, led by a trainer, walks past by during a dolphin show at an amusement park in Pyongyang, June 22, 2018. DITA ALANGKARA, AP
People walk on the street near the Koryo Hotel in Pyongyang, July 5, 2018. POOL VIA EPA
South Korean women's basketball players practice at Ryugyong Chung Ju-yung Gymnasium for exhibition games in Pyongyang, July 3, 2018. POOL VIA EPA-EFE
A worker at Okryugwan restaurant in Pyongyang serves 'naengmyeon,' a cold noodle dish that is the restaurant's specialty, during a welcoming dinner for South Korea's basketball delegation in Pyongyang, July 3, 2018. POOL VIA EPA-EFE
A South Korean journalist has their identity checked from North Korea officials as she arrives at Pyongyang Sunan International Airport July 3, 2018. POOL VIA GETTY IMAGES
Fans cheer during an inter-Korean basketball match at Ryugyong Chung Ju-yung Gymnasium in Pyongyang, July 5, 2018. POOL VIA GETTY IMAGES
People walk on a pedestrian bridge with apartment buildings in the background, in Pyongyang, North Korea on June 20, 2018. High rise apartments are a common form of accommodation for people living in the capital city. Dita Alangkara, AP
An employee in traditional dress stands at the entrance of a restaurant to greet customers in Kaesong, North Korea on June 20, 2018. Dita Alangkara, AP
A North Korean woman pauses during a visit at a trick mirror house at an amusement park in Pyongyang, North Korea on June 19, 2018. Dita Alangkara, AP
School children play in a shooting arcade at an amusement park in Pyongyang, North Korea on June 19, 2018. Dita Alangkara, AP
People enjoy a ride at an amusement park in Pyongyang, North Korea on June 19, 2018. Dita Alangkara, AP
Passengers ride a trolley in Pyongyang, North Korea on June 19, 2018. The city trolley is one of the more common forms of public transportation among North Koreans living in the capital city. Dita Alangkara, AP
A North Korea People's Army (KPA) soldier stands at the entrance to a tunnel at the Punggye-ri nuclear test facility prior to a demolition 'ceremony' May 24, 2018. AFP/GETTY IMAGES
This is a demolition 'ceremony' of North Korea's Punggye-ri nuclear test facility, May 25, 2018 . KOREAN CENTRAL NEWS AGENCY VIA AFP/GETTY IMAGES
Kim Jong Un inspects the completed Koam-Tapchon Railways in Pyongyang, May 25, 2018. NORTH KOREAN CENTRAL NEWS AGENCY
Kim Jong Un inspects the completed Koam-Tapchon Railways in Pyongyang, May 25, 2018. NORTH KOREAN CENTRAL NEWS AGENCY VIA EPA-EFE
South Korean journalists arrive at North Korea's Kalma airport in Wonsan, May 23, 2018. Pyongyang has given South Korean reporters a last minute green-light to witness the slated demolition of North Korea's nuclear test site. SOUTH KOREAN NEWS AGENCY NEWS1 VIA DONG-A ILBO VIA AFP/GETTY IMAGES
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo shake hands at the Workers' Party of Korea headquarters in Pyongyang on May 9, 2018. North Korea's Official Korean Central News Agency via AFP/Getty Images
Wang Yi, state councelor and foreign minister of the People's Republic of China and his deligation visit the Friendship Tower in Pyongyang, May 2, 2018. NORTH KOREAN CENTRAL NEWS AGENCY VIA EPA-EFE
This is the former North Korean Workers Party Headquarters in Cheorwon, April 22, 2018. ED JONES/AFP/GETTY IMAGES
This is the former North Korean Workers Party Headquarters in Cheorwon, April 22, 2018. ED JONES/AFP/GETTY IMAGES
Korean People's Army soldiers arrive to pay their respects before the statues of late North Korean leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il, at Mansu hill in Pyongyang April 15, 2018. ED JONES/AFP/GETTY IMAGES
This is the Pyongyang city skyline and the Taedong river, April 4, 2018.
ED JONES/AFP/GETTY IMAGES
Staff members stand before preserved 'flat-fish' in a science classroom at the Mangyongdae Revolutionary Academy outside Pyongyang, April 10, 2018.
The academy was originally created for orphans who lost parents in the Korean War, and currently has 1000 students. ED JONES/AFP/GETTY IMAGES
Spectators walk across Kim Il Sung square as they arrive to watch a fireworks display during celebrations marking the anniversary of the birth of late North Korean leader Kim Il Sung in Pyongyang on April 15, 2018.
ED JONES/AFP/GETTY IMAGES
Visitors by the gate of the Central zoo in Pyongyang, April 15, 2018. CHA SONG HO/AP
People hold a dance party to celebrate the 106th birth anniversary of late North Korean leader Kim Il-Sung in Pyongyang, in this photo released on April, 15, 2018. NORTH KOREA'S OFFICIAL KOREAN CE
This photo released by the North Korean Central News Agency, shows Kim Jong-un chairman of the Workers' Party of Korea and chairman of the State Affairs Commission of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, together with his wife Ri Sol-ju speaking to the cast after enjoying the ballet choreodrama 'Red Women Company' performed by a Chinese art troupe at the East Pyongyang Grand Theater, April 16, 2018. NORTH KOREAN CENTRAL NEWS AGENCY VIA EPA-EFE
This April 15, 2018 picture released from North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on April 16, 2018 shows fireworks being displayed to celebrate the 106th birth anniversary of late North Korean leader Kim Il-Sung in Pyongyang. KCNA VIA KNS, NORTH KOREA'S OFFICIAL KOREAN CENTRAL NEWS AGENCY VIA AFP/GETTY IMAGES
Spectators watch fireworks over the Taedong river during celebrations marking the anniversary of the birth of late North Korean leader Kim Il Sung in Pyongyang April 15, 2018. April 15 is known as the Day of the Sun. ED JONES/AFP/GETTY IMAGES
Students participate in a 'mass dance' event outside the Pyongyang Indoor Stadium as
thousands of people gathered to dance in celebration of late leader Kim Jong Il. ED JONES/AFP/GETTY IMAGES
This is the Mansudae Assembly Hall in Pyongyang, April 9, 2018. CHA SONG HO/AP
Students participate in a 'mass dance' event outside the Pyongyang Indoor Stadium as
thousands of people gathered to dance in celebration of late leader Kim Jong Il. ED JONES/AFP/GETTY IMAGES
A light show displays a North Korean flag on top the Ryugyong hotel in Pyongyang April 9, 2018. ED JONES/AFP/GETTY IMAGES
Runners compete in the Pyongyang International Marathon with a backdrop of the Arch of Triumph in Pyongyang, North Korea, April 8, 2018. Hundreds of overseas runners hit the streets in Pyongyang for North Korea's annual marathon. Jon Chol Jin, AP
Children fly kites during Lunar New Year festivities on Kim Il Sung square in Pyongyang Feb. 16, 2018. KIM WON-JIN, AFP/GETTY IMAGES
North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un shakes hands with South Korean chief delegator Chung Eui-yong during a meeting in Pyongyang, March 6, 2018. NORTH KOREA'S OFFICIAL KOREAN CENTRAL NEWS AGENCY VIA AFP/GETTY IMAGES
The North Korean delegation of athletes, supporters and journalists arrive in Pyongyang after taking part in the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics in South Korea, Feb. 26, 2018
KCNA VIA KNS VIA AFP/GETTY IMAGES
Visitors take smartphone photos at the '8th National Cooking Competition' at the Pyongyang Noodle House in Pyongyang, Feb. 12, 2018. KIM WON-JIN, AFP/GETTY IMAGES
A chef prepares a dish during a demonstration at the '8th National Cooking Competition' at the Pyongyang Noodle House in Pyongyang, Feb. 12, 2018. KIM WON-JIN, AFP/GETTY IMAGES
A foreign visitor stands for a photo with a Korean People's Army soldier in front of a portrait of late North Korean leader Kim Jong IL, at the 22nd 'Kimjongilia Festival' flower festival marking the upcoming 'Day of Shining Star', the anniversary of the Kim's birth, in Pyongyang Feb.13, 2018. KIM WON-JIN, AFP/GETTY IMAGES
North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) released this photo taken Feb. 8, 2018 on Feb. 9, 2018. It shows North Korean soldiers marching during the military parade to mark the 70th anniversary of the Korean People's Army at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang. KCNA VIA KNS, AFP/Getty Images
North Korea put some of its military hardware and soldiers on parade a day before the Winter Olympics open in the South. KCNA VIA KNS, AFP/Getty Images
In this image made from video by North Korea's KRT, military tanks are seen during a parade in Pyongyang. NORTH KOREA'S KRT VIA AP
The satellite Deimos-2 captured this photo of Pyongyang today during their military parade, Feb. 8, 2018. On the left of this photo you can see armored vehicles in the street during the parade. DEIMOS IMAGING AN URTHECAST COMPANY
In this image made from video released by KRT, North Korean soldiers march during a military parade in Pyongyang, Feb. 8 2018. NORTH KOREA'S KRT VIA AP
In this image made from video released by KRT on Feb. 8, 2018, a military parade is held at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang. NORTH KOREA'S KRT VIA AP
In this an image made from video by North Korea's KRT, a military parade is held in Pyongyang, Feb. 8, 2018. NORTH KOREA'S KRT VIA AP
In this image made from video by North Korea's KRT, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, attends a military parade in Pyongyang, North Korea. North Korea held a massive military parade highlighted by intercontinental ballistic missiles in its capital one day before South Korea hosts the opening ceremony of the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics. North Korea's KRT VIA AP
A North Korean military guide leads a tour of the USS Pueblo in Pyongyang, Jan. 24, 2018. The Pueblo, an American spy ship, was attacked and captured by North Korea 50 years ago. The ship is the only commissioned US Navy ship held by a foreign government. ERIC TALMADGE, AP
A 'super blood blue moon' rises above the Ryugyong hotel in Pyongyang, Jan. 31, 2018. The cosmic event not seen in 36 years was glimpsed in parts of western North America, Asia, the Middle East, Russia and Australia. KIM WON-JIN, Afp/Getty Images
Schoolchildren shovel snow Jan. 22, 2018, in Pyongyang as temperatures were forecast to drop below -2 degrees. ERIC TALMADGE, AP
Women use drums and flags to cheer on commuters during the morning rush hour in Pyongyang Feb. 2, 2018. The cheering squads, intended to motivate people on their way to work or school, are a common morning ritual in the North Korean capital. ERIC TALMADGE, AP
A couple ice skate at the Outdoor Skating Rink in Pyongyang Feb. 1, 2018. ERIC TALMADGE, AP
A group of officials of ministries and national institutions run on the occasion of the first sports day this year at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang, North Korea on Jan. 14, 2018. Jon Chol Jin, AP
A mass rally organizes in the Kim Il Sung Square vowing to carry through the tasks set forth by the country's leader Kim Jong Un in his New Year address in Pyongyang, North Korea on Jan. 4, 2018. Jon Chol Jin, AP
Participants perform mass rhythmic exercise on the occasion of the first sports day this year at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang, North Korea on Jan. 14, 2018. Jon Chol Jin, AP
Children stand before an ice sculpture at the Pyongyang Ice Sculpture Festival, marking the new year on Kim Il Sung Square Dec. 31, 2, 17. KIM WON-JIN, AFP/Getty Images
This is an overview of the second day of the 5th Conference of Cell Chairpersons of the Workers' Party of Korea in Pyongyang, Dec. 22, 2017. North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency via AFP/Getty Images
Passengers wait for their flights in the departures lobby of Pyongyang's international airport, Dec. 23, 2017. Despite being one of the least Internet-friendly countries in the world, North Korea's main Internet provider recently set up an airport WiFi network that is available to travelers who have cleared customs. Access to WiFi and the Internet in general remains beyond the reach of most North Koreans. Eric Talmadge, AP
Fireworks usher in the New Year in Pyongyang, Jan. 1, 2018 North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency via AFP/Getty Images
Children play as others gather on Kim Il Sung Square to celebrate the New Year, Jan. 1, 2018, in Pyongyang. Jon Chol Jin, AP
People offer flowers to the statues of their late leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il at Mansu Hill, marking the sixth anniversary of leader Kim Jong Il's death in Pyongyang, Dec. 17, 2017. Jon Chol Jin, AP
A street in central Pyongyang, Nov. 15, 2017
ED JONES, AFP/Getty Images
Korean People's Army (KPA) soldiers bow before statues of late North Korean leaders Kim Il-Sung and Kim Jong-Il to mark the sixth anniversary of the death of Kim Jong-Il, at Mansu hill in Pyongyang Dec. 17, 2017. KIM WON-JIN, AFP/Getty Images
Song Song-Hui (C) sits with relatives gathered at her apartment in Pyongyang Nov. 17, 2017. North and South Korea are radically different societies, one ruled by the same family for decades and the other a freewheeling democracy and thrusting economy, but one thing unites them - fermented cabbage. Kimchi, originally a means of preserving the vegetable during winter and which can vary from mild to fiery, has been a staple part of virtually every meal on the now-divided peninsula for centuries. ED JONES, AFP/Getty Images
This Dec. 8, 2017 photo released from North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency shows Pyongyang residents greeting officers of Hwasong-15 missile test launch in Pyongyang. KCNA via AFP/Getty Images
North Korean soldiers attend a mass rally in Kim Il-Sung Square in Pyongyang to celebrate the North's declaration it had achieved full nuclear statehood, Dec. 1, 2017. North Korea's leader Kim Jong-Un declared the country had achieved a "historic cause" of becoming a nuclear state, its state media said Nov. 29, after the country tested an intercontinental ballistic missile earlier in the day. KIM WON-JIN, AFP/Getty Images
This Dec. 12, 2017 photo released from North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency shows scientists attending a reception hosted by the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea at the Mokran House and the People's Palace of Culture in Pyongyang. KCNA via AFP/Getty Images
In a photo taken on Nov. 19, 2017, a woman and child pull a cart loaded with wood along a road near Kiliju on North Korea's northeast coast. ED JONES, AFP/Getty Images
In a photo taken on Nov. 18, 2017, a woman carrying cabbage rides a bicycle past a beach in North Korea's eastern port city of Wonsan. ED JONES, AFP/Getty Images
North Koreans attend a mass rally in Kim Il-Sung Square in Pyongyang to celebrate the North's declaration it had achieved full nuclear statehood on Dec. 1, 2017. Kim Won-Jin, AFP/Getty Images
In a photo taken on Nov. 21, 2017, a man pushes a bicycle past a factory in the industrial city of Chongjin on North Korea's northeast coast. ED JONES, AFP/Getty Images
This photo taken on Nov. 19, 2017 shows cyclists passing along a road on the outskirts of the industrial city of Chongjin on North Korea's northeast coast. ED JONES, AFP/Getty Images
A man waits to cross a street in Rason.
at the northeastern tip of North Korea, Nov. 21, 2017. ED JONES, AFP/Getty Images
This is a photo released by the North Korean Central News Agency on Nov. 30, 2017 of the launch of the newly developed inter-continental ballistic rocket Hwasong-15 on at an undisclosed location in North Korea, Nov. 28, 2017. KCNA via EPA-EFE
This photo was released by the North Korean Central News Agency on Nov. 30, 2017 of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un giving an order to test-fire the newly developed inter-continental ballistic rocket Hwasong-15 on at an undisclosed location in North Korea. KCNA via EPA-EFE
A sailor stands on his boat in the port in Rason at the northeastern tip of North Korea, Nov. 21, 2017. ED JONES, AFP/Getty Images
Ra In-Hae, 46, in her new home, portraits of late North Korean leaders Kim Il-Sung and Kim Jong-Il, hang on the wall near Rason at the northeastern tip of North Korea, Nov. 21, 2017. ED JONES, AFP/Getty Images
A woman shields herself from the cold at the port in Rason at the northeastern tip of North Korea, Nov. 21, 2017. ED JONES, AFP/Getty Images
People cheer as they watch the news broadcast announcing North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's order to test-fire the newly developed inter-continental ballistic missile Hwasong-15, Nov. 29, 2017, at the Pyongyang Train Station. Jon Chol Jin, AP
People watch the news broadcast announcing North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's order to test-fire the newly developed inter-continental ballistic missile Hwasong-15, Nov. 29, 2017, at the Pyongyang Train Station. Jon Chol Jin, AP
In this photo provided by South Korea Defense Ministry, South Korea's Hyunmoo II missile is fired during an exercise at an undisclosed location in South Korea, Nov. 29, 2017. South Korea Defense Ministry via AP
North Korean soldiers look at the South side near the spot where a North Korean soldier crossed the border on Nov. 13 at the Panmunjom, in the Demilitarized Zone, South Korea, Nov. 27, 2017. South Korea is reportedly broadcasting on loudspeakers into North Korea news of the recent escape of a North Korean soldier who was shot five times by his former colleagues as he dashed across the rivals' border, part of Seoul's psychological warfare against the North. Lee Jin-man, AP
Vendors prepare flowers for Mother's Day at a flower shop in Pyongyang on Nov. 16, 2017. North Koreans in Pyongyang typically mark Mother's Day with flowers and chocolates. which they celebrate on Nov. 16. ED JONES, AFP/Getty Images
North Korean soldiers look at the South side at the spot where a North Korean soldier crossed the border on Nov. 13 at the Panmunjom, in the Demilitarized Zone, South Korea, Nov. 27, 2017. South Korea is reportedly broadcasting on loudspeakers into North Korea news of the recent escape of a North Korean soldier who was shot five times by his former colleagues as he dashed across the rivals' border, part of Seoul's psychological warfare against the North. ( Lee Jin-man, AP
In this photo taken through the window of a car, students illuminated by a public television screen walk past the central station in Pyongyang Nov. 16, 2017. ED JONES, AFP/Getty Images
People dance in a park in Pyongyang, Nov.15, 2017. ED JONES, AFP/Getty Images
This is a North Korean military guard outpost seen from Paju, South Korea, Nov. 14, 2017. Four North Korean soldiers fired 40 rounds at a comrade fleeing into South Korea and hit him five times in what is the first shooting at the jointly controlled area of the heavily fortified border since 1984. Lee Jin-man, AP
This undated picture released from North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on Nov. 15, 2017 shows North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un inspecting a Kumsong Tractor at the factory in Nampo City, North Korea. (KCNA) via AFP/Getty Images
These two ride a bicycle as they pass along a street before the city skyline of 'Mirae Scientists Street' in Pyongyang. Sept. 27, 2017. Ed Jones, AFP/Getty Images
Runners compete in the half-marathon in Pyongyang, Oct. 29, 2017. Jon Chol Jin, AP
Amateur horse riders compete during the 'Autumn Race-Goers Games' at the Mirim Riding Club in Pyongyang Oct. 15, 2017.
The Mirim riding club equestrian centre opened in 2013 and serves as a destination for foreign tour groups and well-heeled North Koreans. Kim Won-Jin, AFP/Getty Images
A salesperson of 'Jilin Provincial Muziwu Daily Necessities' of China demonstrates a noodle-making device at the 'Pyongyang International Sci-tech Exhibition', at the Sci-tech Complex in Pyongyang Oct. 16, 2017. Kim Won-Jin, AFP/Getty Images
Spectators watch competitors during the 'Autumn Race-Goers Games' at the Mirim Riding Club in Pyongyang on Oct. 15, 2017. The Mirim riding club equestrian centre opened in 2013 and serves as a destination for foreign tour groups and well-heeled North Koreans. Kim Won-Jin, AFP/Getty Images
Men and women participate in a mass dance event marking the 20th anniversary of the election of former leader Kim Jong Il as general secretary of the Workers' Party, which is the founding and ruling party of North Korea, at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang,Oct. 8, 2017. Jon Chol Jin, AP
Men ride on a make shift raft to transport logs down the river that divides North Korea from China near the Chinese city of Lingjiang in northeastern China's Jilin province, Aug. 30, 2017. Ng Han Guan, AP
Participants described as 'working people, youth, and students of Pyongyang' perform during a mass gala event marking the 20th anniversary of late North Korean leader Kim Jong Il's election as general secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) on Kim Il-Sung square in central Pyongyang, Oct. 8, 2017.
Kim Won-Jin, AFP/Getty Images
A man shoots an air-powered rifle at a shooting stall on a street in Pyongyang, Sept. 27, 2017, Ed Jones, AFP/Getty Images
A propaganda troupe perform a flag-waving routine outside the central railway station in Pyongyang, Sept. 2t, 2017. Ed Jones, AFP/Getty Images
Pedestrians pass through a square outside the central railway station in Pyongyang, Sept. 27, 2017. Ed Jones, AFP/Getty Images
Visitors try a ride at an amusement fair in Pyongyang, Sept. 26, 2017. Ed Jones, AFP/Getty Images
Participants of a mass rally shout slogans as they gather on Kim Il-Sung sqaure in Pyongyang on Sept. 23, 2017.
Tens of thousands of Pyongyang residents were gathered in the capital's Kim Il-Sung square to laud leader Kim Jong-Un's denunciation of President Donald Trump. Kim Won-Jin, AFP/Getty Images
Visitors look at kitchens on display at the 13th International Trade Fair in Pyongyang, Sept. 25, 2017 Ed Jones, AFP/Getty Images
A woman carries a child across a road in Pyongyang, Sept. 24, 2017. Ed Jones, AFP/Getty Images
A Chinese vendor hands scarves to North Korean customers at the 13th International Trade Fair in Pyongyang, Sept. 25, 2017. Ed Jones, AFP/Getty Images
A woman pulls a trolley across a street before a taxi during rainfall in Pyongyang, Sept. 24, 2017. Ed Jones, AFP/Getty Images
Two men play pool at a bowling alley in Pyongyang, Sept. 24, 2017. Ed Jones, AFP/Getty Images
Service persons of the Ministry of People's Security during an anti-US rally in Pyongyang, Sept. 24, 2017. Afp Photo/Kcna Via Kns
Spectators gather to watch a public news brodcast of a statement by North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un, before a public television screen outside the central railway station in Pyongyang, Sept. 21, 2017. Ed Jones, AFP/Getty Images
Dancers perform during the 20th ITF World Taekwondo Championships in Pyongyang, Sept. 21, 2017. Ed Jones, AFP/Getty Images
A woman stands at a street-side flower stall in Pyongyang, Sept. 21, 2017. Ed Jones, AFP/Getty Images
Anglers compete during a fishing contest at Pothong riverside in Pyongyang. , Sept. 14, 2017. Some 60 people participated in the event and tried to catch carp and catfish. Jon Chol Jin, AP
A man crosses a street outside the central railway station in Pyongyang, Sept. 21, 2017. Ed Jones, AFP/Getty Images
A girl leans on a lamp post outside the central railway station in Pyongyang, Sept. 21, 2017. Ed Jones, AFP/Getty Images
Spectators listen to a television news brodcast of a statment by North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un, before a public television screen outside the central railway station in Pyongyang on Sept. 21, 2017.
Ed Jones, AFP/Getty Images
This undated picture released from North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on Sept. 21, 2017 shows North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un visiting a fruit farm in the South Hwanghae Province. Korean Central News Agency via
A group of North Korean tourists stand before the city skyline atop the Juche tower in Pyongyang Sept. 20, 2017. Ed Jones, AFP/Getty Images
A North Korean soldier stands on the bank of the Yalu river near the North Korean town of Sinuiju, opposite the Chinese border city of Dandong, in China's northeast Liaoning province on Sept. 4, 2017. AFP
Fireworks go off while Pyongyang residents and military people hold a celebration rally on the test of a hydrogen bomb for ICBM at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang, Sept. 4, 2017. North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency via AFP/Getty Images
This coastline (top) above the barbed-wire fence is the Demilitarized zone (DMZ) separating North and South Korea, on Ganghwa island on Sept. 4, 2017.
North Korea could be preparing another Ed Jones, AFP/Getty Images
Korean People's Army (KPA) soldiers cheer while watching fireworks during a mass celebration in Pyongyang for scientists involved in carrying out North Korea's largest nuclear blast to date.Sept. 6, 2017. Citizens of the capital lined the streets to wave pink and purple pom-poms and cheer a convoy of buses carrying the specialists into the city, and toss confetti over them as they walked into Kim Il-Sung Square. Kim Won-Jin, AFP/Getty Images
Korean People's Army (KPA) soldiers attend a mass celebration in Pyongyang for scientists involved in carrying out North Korea's largest nuclear blast to date, Sept. 6, 2017. KIM WON-JIN, AFP/Getty Images
The sun rises over North Korea and the Yalu river which forms the border between China and North Korea, as seen from Dandong, in China's northeast Liaoning province on Sept. 5, 2017.
Greg Baker, AFP/Getty Images
North Koreand rest on a wall on the bank of the Yalu river near the North Korean town of Sinuiju, opposite the Chinese border city of Dandong, in China's northeast Liaoning province on Sept. 5, 2017.
Greg Baker, AFP/Getty Images
North Korean soldiers stand at a fence on the bank of the Yalu river near the North Korean town of Sinuiju, opposite the Chinese border city of Dandong, in China's northeast Liaoning province on Sept. 5, 2017.
Greg Baker, AFP/Getty Images
The North Korean coastline can be seen behind the barbed-wire fence of the Demilitarized zone (DMZ) separating North and South Korea, on Ganghwa island Sept. 4, 2017.
Ed Jones, AFP/Getty Images
Two North Koreans help each other wash in the Yalu river near the North Korean town of Sinuiju, opposite the Chinese border city of Dandong, in China's northeast Liaoning province on Sept. 4, 2017.
Greg Baker, AFP/Getty Images
A North Korean man brings his boat up to a Chinese tourist boat to sell North Korean products, on the Yalu river near the North Korean town of Sinuiju, opposite the Chinese border city of Dandong, in China's northeast Liaoning province on Sept. 4, 2017.
Greg Baker, AFP/Getty Images
North Korean men unload a trailer on the bank of the Yalu river near the North Korean town of Sinuiju, opposite the Chinese border city of Dandong, in China's northeast Liaoning province on Sept. 4, 2017.
Greg Baker, AFP/Getty Images
A North Korean soldier stands on a loading ramp on the bank of the Yalu river near the North Korean town of Sinuiju, opposite the Chinese border city of Dandong, in China's northeast Liaoning province on Sept. 4, 2017.
Greg Baker, AFP/Getty Images
Korean People's Army soldiers applaud as they watch a screen showing news coverage of a missile test launch, in a public square outside a train station in Pyongyang on Aug 30, 2017. Kim Won-Jin, AFP/Getty Images
People fill the square of the main railway station to watch a televised news broadcast of the test-fire of an inter-continental ballistic rocket Hwasong-12, in Pyongyang, Aug. 30, 2017. Kim Kwang Hyon, AP
Cashiers work at the Potonggang department store in Pyongyang, North Korea, June 19, 2017. Wong Maye-E, AP
Staff at the Potonggang department store stock shelves with local and imported snacks, mostly from China, in Pyongyang, June 19, 2017. Wong Maye-E, AP
People wave banners and shout slogans as they attend a rally in support of North Korea's stance against the US, on Kim Il-Sung square in Pyongyang on Aug. 9, 2017. Kim Won-Jin, AFP/Getty Images
Pedestrians and vehicles pass before the portraits of late North Korean leaders Kim Il-Sung (L) and Kim Jong-Il (R) in Pyongyang on July 21, 2017. Ed Jones, AFP/Getty Images
Awoman stands at the entrance to a supermarket in Pyongyang on July 28, 2017. Ed Jones, AFP/Getty Images
Steel worker Kang Chol-Su (38) poses for a portrait at the Chollima Steel Complex, south of Pyongyang on July 22, 2017. Ed Jones, AFP/Getty Images
A hostess cooks clams using gasoline, at the West Sea Barrage beach outside the coastal city of Nampho, southwest of Pyongyang on July 22, 2017.
The West Sea Barrage beach features as a stopping point for foreign tourists, and is a destination for North Korean work groups from the neighbouring area. The beach lies at the end of an eight-kilometre-long barrage that separates the sea from the Taedong River, which runs through Pyongyang. Ed Jones, AFP/Getty Images
A photo taken on July 22, 2017, shows beachgoers dancing at the West Sea Barrage beach outside the coastal city of Nampo, southwest of Pyongyang.
The West Sea Barrage beach features as a stopping point for foreign tourists and is a destination for North Korean work groups from the neighboring area. ED JONES, AFP/Getty Images
Swimmers gather in a wave pool at a water park in a leisure complex in Pyongyang on July 21. Ed Jones, AFP/Getty Images
A group of men look toward the West Sea Barrage beach outside the coastal city of Nampo, southwest of Pyongyang, on July 22, 2017. Ed Jones, AFP/Getty Images
Workers repair a section of the 'West Sea Barrage,' outside the coastal city of Nampo, southwest of Pyongyang, July 22, 2017. Ed Jones, AFP/Getty Images
North Korean women push their cart and bicycles over a bridge in Hamhung, the second-largest city and the capital of South Hamgyong province in North Korea. Wong Maye E, AP
A group of youths play tennis in a public square in Pyongyang on July 20. Ed Jones, AFP/Getty Images
North Korean men work on farm fields along the Pyongyang-Wonsan highway on July 20 in Sangwon. Wong Maye E, AP
North Korean women make their way across a road at the end of a workday July 20 in Hamhung. Wong Maye E, AP
Korean People's Army (KPA) soldiers walk past portraits of late North Korean leaders Kim Il Sung, left, and Kim Jong Il at the Korean Revolutionary Museum in Pyongyang on July 19. Ed Jones, AFP/Getty Images
North Korean schoolgirls stop at a kiosk selling flowers July 18 in Pyongyang. Wong Maye E, AP
Soldiers gather in Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang to celebrate the test launch of North Korea's first intercontinental ballistic missile two days earlier, July 6, 2017. Jon Chol Jin, AP
Soldiers watch fireworks in Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang, July 6, 2017, to celebrate the test launch of North Korea's first intercontinental ballistic missile two days earlier. Jon Chol Jin, AP
The sky is overcast in Pyongyang July 17, 2017. The 105-story pyramid-shaped Ryugyong Hotel has been under construction since 1987 and was intended to be a landmark and a symbol of progress and prosperity, but the economic difficulties that the country went through forced the project into repeated delays and nearly 30 years later. It has become a major Pyongyang landmark but has never been used as a hotel, as it was intended. Wong Maye-E, AP
North Koreans ride in a crowded electric trolley, which is one of the more common modes of public transport around the North Korean capital July 16, 2017, in Pyongyang. Wong Maye-E, AP
Soldiers of the Korean People's Army (KPA) watch a fireworks display as part of celebrations marking the July 4 launch of the Hwasong-14 intercontinental ballistic missile in Pyongyang, July 6, 2017. Kim Won-Jin, AFP/Getty Images
A primary school student An Jae-Gwon (10) poses for a portrait during a festive 'children's day' event at 'Primary School Number 4' in Pyongyang, June 6, 2017. Ed Jones, AFP/Getty Images
A woman stops by a kiosk selling gifts and flowers along the streets of Pyongyang, June 16, 2017. Wong Maye-E, AP
Pedestrians walk along a residential area at dusk in Pyongyang, North Korea, June 19, 2017. Wong Maye-E, AP
Two boys row their boat on the Pothong River where rice is being planted in Pyongyang, June 19, 2017. Wong Maye-E, AP
People walk cross the Pothong river via a suspended bridge while another man is silhouetted as he plants grass in Pyongyang, June 19, 2017. Wong Maye-E, AP
A waitress moves a dining chair at a restaurant terrace which overlooks a residential street at dusk in Pyongyang, June 19, 2017. Wong Maye-E, AP
People are are silhouette as they start their morning commute down a road in Pyongyang. Wong Maye-E, AP
Staff members from a boat restaurant on the Taedong River line up at the entrance as they wait to greet customers June 18, 2017, in Pyongyang. The boat is berthed along the river, which is the fifth longest river on the Korean Peninsula and runs through the country's capital. Wong Maye-E, AP
A Korean People's Army (KPA) soldier gestures as he stands before the military demarcation line separating North and South Korea, before South Korea's 'Freedom House' (rear C) at the Joint Security Area (JSA) near Kaesong, June 4, 2017. Ed Jones, AFP/Getty Images
Men push their bicycles past the portraits of late North Korean leaders Kim Il-Sungand Kim Jong-Il on Kim Il-Sung square in Pyongyang, June 4, 2017. Ed Jones, AFP/Getty Images
North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un at a photo session with the participants in the 8th Congress of the Korean Children's Union in Pyongyang, June 6, 2017. AFP Photo/KCNA via KNS
An elderly woman follows behind children pushing their bicycle at the end of a work day in Pyongyang, June 13, 2017. Wong Maye-E, AP
A farmer transplants rice seedlings in a field in Pyongyang, June 13, 2017. Wong Maye-E, AP
Former NBA basketball player Dennis Rodman arrives at Sunan International Airport June 13, 2017, in Pyongyang. Kim Kwang Hyon, AP
People watch a screen showing news coverage of the Pukguksong-2 missile rocket launch at a public square in central Pyongyang May 22, 2017. Kim Won-Jin, AFP/Getty Images
People attend the 20th Pyongyang Spring International Trade Fair in Pyongyang, May 22, 2017. Countries participating in the fair include Belarus, China, Iran, Italy, Indonesia, Vietnam, and Cuba Jon Chol Jin, AP
People gather at a street-side newsstand in Pyongyang and read a copy of the Rodong Sinmun newspaper featuring coverage of a rocket test from May 14, 2017. in Kim Won-Jin, AFP/Getty Images
This is a test launch of the ground-to-ground medium long-range strategic ballistic rocket Hwasong-12 at an undisclosed location. This picture taken on May 14, 2017 and released from North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency, via AFP/Getty Images
Women soldiers march across Kim Il Sung Square during a military parade on in Pyongyang, April 15, 2017, They were celebrating the 105th birth anniversary of Kim Il Sung, the country's late founder and grandfather of current ruler Kim Jong Un. Wong Maye-E, AP
An elderly man is silhouetted against a model of the Unha 3, a space launch vehicle, displayed at the Sci-Tech Complex in Pyongyang, April 17, 2017. Wong Maye-E, AP
Soldiers march across Kim Il Sung Square during a military parade on in Pyongyang, April 15, 2017, They were celebrating the 105th birth anniversary of Kim Il Sung, the country's late founder and grandfather of current ruler Kim Jong Un. Wong Maye-E, AP
Boys play on the sidewalk along Changjon Street lined with tall residential buildings in April 19, 2017, in Pyongyang. Wong Maye-E, AP
Men and women walk along a residential area in Pyongyang, April 17, 2017. Wong Maye-E, AP
A woman is silhouetted against the sky as she exercises in Pyongyang, April 17, 2017. Wong Maye-E, AP
North Koreans sit at the back of a truck as it drives along Mirae Scientists Street in Pyongyang, April 19, 2017. Wong Maye-E, AP
A commuter is seen through a tram window in Pyongyang April 14, 2017. How Hwee Young, European Pressphoto Agency
Commuters walk up the stairs as a train leaves a subway station in Pyongyang April 14, 2017. How Hwee Young, European Pressphoto Agency
A boy performs the zither at the Mangyondae School Children's Palace in Pyongyang, April 14, 2017. How Hwee Young, European Pressphoto Agency
Two elderly men crouch on a smoke break in Pyongyang, Feb. 13, 2017. Wong Maye-E, AP
People walk down the street in Pyongyang, Feb. 12, 2017. Wong Maye-E, AP
A boy runs with the national flag along the Pyongyang-Wonsan highway in Wonsan, which is about 125 miles from the capital and is a port city located along the eastern side of the Korean Peninsula, Feb. 11, 2017. Wong Maye-E, AP
Children of the workers at the Suk Silk Mill sing and dance at a childcare center at the the mill in Pyongyang, Jan. 6, 2017. The mill, named after North Korean leader Kim Jong UnÕs grandmother, is where 1,600 workers _ mostly women _ sort and process silkworms which produce silk thread that officials at the Pyongyang factory say is made into roughly 200 tons of silk a year. Wong Maye-E, AP
Kim Jong-Un posing with the school students while visiting newly built Pyongyang Orphans' Primary School, Feb. 2, 2017.
STR, AFP/Getty Images
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![People wearing face masks leave after laying flowers before the statues of late North Korean leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il on the occasion of the 108th birthday of late North Korean leader Kim Il Sung, known as the 'Day of the Sun', in Pyongyang on April 15, 2020.]()
1 of 311![People wearing face masks lay flowers before the statues of late North Korean leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il on the occasion of the 108th birthday of late North Korean leader Kim Il Sung, known as the 'Day of the Sun', in Pyongyang on April 15, 2020.]()
2 of 311![Workers of Songyo Knitwear Factory in Pyongyang produce masks for protection against the new coronavirus on Feb. 6, 2020.]()
3 of 311![A health worker sprays disinfectant on the hands of a woman amid concerns over the COVID-19 coronavirus at an entrance of the Pyongchon District People's Hospital in Pyongyang on April 1, 2020.]()
4 of 311![People review information explaining the COVID-19 coronavirus at the Phyongchon District People's Hospital in Pyongyang, North Korea, April, 1, 2020.]()
5 of 311![A worker checks bottles of new disinfectant products on a production line at the Ryongaksan Soap Factory in Pyongyang on March 19, 2020.]()
6 of 311![A woman helps her daughter seen wearing a face mask in Pyongyang on Feb. 6, 2020.]()
7 of 311![The afternoon sun casts the shadow of a man at Ryomyong street in Pyongyang, North Korea on Nov. 25, 2019.]()
8 of 311![A picture released on November 25, 2019 by North Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) shows Kim Jong-Un, chairman of the Workers' Party of Korea and supreme commander of the armed forces of the DPRK, posing for a photo with members of a women's company under Unit 5492 of the Korean People's Army stationed at a remote seaside on the southwestern front, North Korea.]()
9 of 311![A man reads while waiting for a train as a statue of late North Korean President Kim Il Sung is seen in the background at Kaeson subway station in Pyongyang, North Korea, Saturday, Nov. 23, 2019.]()
10 of 311![People walk past a shop that sells toys in Pyongyang, North Korea, Saturday, Nov. 23, 2019.]()
11 of 311![A man buys cosmetics on Mothers' Day in Pyongyang, North Korea Saturday, Nov. 16, 2019.]()
12 of 311![People celebrate Mothers' Day in Pyongyang, North Korea Saturday, Nov. 16, 2019.]()
13 of 311![This guide stands before the Samjiyon grand monument in Samjiyon, Sept. 13, 2019. The construction project ordered by leader Kim Jong Un, involves the rebuilding of the entire town of Samjiyon. The plan includes a museum of revolutionary activities, a winter sports training complex, processing plants for blueberries and potatoes which are two of the area's most important crops. ]()
14 of 311![In this undated photo provided on Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2019, by the North Korean government, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un rides a white horse to climb Mount Paektu, North Korea. Independent journalists were not given access to cover the event depicted in this image distributed by the North Korean government. The content of this image is as provided and cannot be independently verified. Korean language watermark on image as provided by source reads: "KCNA" which is the abbreviation for Korean Central News Agency.]()
15 of 311![Students pose for photos in Chonji lake, or 'Heaven lake', as they visit the crater of Mount Paektu, near Samjiyon, Sept. 11, 2019. ]()
16 of 311![PedestriaPedestrians shield themselves from wind and rain brought by Typhoon Lingling, Sept. 7, 2019, in Pyongyang. The typhoon passed along South Korea’s coast has toppled trees, grounded planes and caused at least two deaths before making landfall. ]()
17 of 311![A child drives a toy car across Kim Il Sung square in Pyongyang as North Korea marked the 71st anniversary of its foundation, with a public holiday, Sept. 9, 2019. ]()
18 of 311![A woman and her children wait for a bus at a stop on Mirae Scientist Street in Pyongyang, Sept. 12, 2019.]()
19 of 311![North Koreans play at Munsu Waterpark in Pyongyang, July 17, 2019.]()
20 of 311![North Koreans play at Munsu Waterpark in Pyongyang, July 17, 2019.]()
21 of 311![Swimmers ride a water slide at the Munsu water park in Pyongyang, june 16, 2019. ]()
22 of 311![ Commuters ride a bus past the portraits of late North Korean leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il, on Kim Il Sung square in Pyongyang on June 18, 2019. Commuters ride a bus past the portraits of late North Korean leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il, on Kim Il Sung square in Pyongyang on June 18, 2019.]()
23 of 311![A conductor updates a newspaper stand in a subway train station in Pyongyang on June 18, 2019.]()
24 of 311![Tourists from China pose for photos before the Three Charters monument in Pyongyang June 14, 2019. Ordinary Chinese pay travel companies around $360.00 for a standard three-day trip to North Korea, arriving overland by train to tour the capital's highlights, from the Arch of Triumph to Kim Il Sung Square. ]()
25 of 311![Swimmers rest beside a wave pool at the Munsu water park in Pyongyang, june 19, 2019. ]()
26 of 311![A swimmer rides a water slide at the Munsu water park in Pyongyang, June 16, 2019. ]()
27 of 311![Students hold cards to form pattern of smiling face of an old man during the mass game performance of "The Land of the People" at the May Day Stadium in Pyongyang, Friday, June 7, 2019.]()
28 of 311![Dancers play with rings during the mass game performance "The Land of the People" at the May Day Stadium in Pyongyang, Friday, June 7, 2019.]()
29 of 311![Girls in penguin costumes perform before the start of games during an International Children's Day event in Pyongyang, North Korea Saturday, June 1, 2019.]()
30 of 311![This undated picture released from North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) via KNS on June 1, 2019 shows North Korean leader Kim Jong Un posing with schoolchildren during his visit to the 250-mile Journey for Learning Schoolchildren's Palace in Jagang province in North Korea.]()
31 of 311![Farmers transplant rice seedlings in a field in Chongsan-ri, Kangso district, Nampho, North Korea, Sunday, May 12, 2019. (AP Photo/Cha Song Ho) ORG XMIT: OTK]()
32 of 311![Korean People's Army (KPA) soldiers stand before a bride and groom during a wedding photo shoot at a park in Pyongyang on April 18, 2019.]()
33 of 311![A bride and groom jump over a skipping rope as they pose during a wedding photo shoot at a park in Pyongyang on April 18, 2019.]()
34 of 311![In a photo taken on April 11, 2018, a performance troupe from Russia arrives at the opening of the "April Spring Friendship Art Festival" outside a theatre in Pyongyang.]()
35 of 311![A woman wiper her eyes as she waits to pay her respects before the statues of late North Korean leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il, as part of celebrations marking the anniversary of the birth of Kim Il Sung, known as the 'Day of the Sun', on Mansu hill in Pyongyang on April 15, 2019.]()
36 of 311![The First Session of the 14th Supreme People's Assembly of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea meets at the Mansudae Assembly Hall in Pyongyang on April 11, 2019.]()
37 of 311![Visitors tour the 21st Kimilsungia Festival opens marking the birthday anniversary of President Kim Il Sung at the Kimilsungia-Kimjongilia Exhibition Friday, April 12th, 2019, in Pyongyang, North Korea.]()
38 of 311![A competitor interacts with a child on a road side during the annual 'Mangyongdae Prize International Marathon' in Pyongyang, April 7, 2019.]()
39 of 311![North Korean leader Kim Jong Un visits the Taesong Department Store in this photo released April, 8, 2019.]()
40 of 311![Competitors run past the Ryugyong hotel during the annual Pyongyang marathon, April 7, 2019. There were twice as many in this years race than last. as last year ran in the city's annual maratho]()
41 of 311![An airport worker walks across a bridge near Sunan international airport outside Pyongyang, March 12, 2019.]()
42 of 311![This is the Fifth Meeting of Company Leaders and Political Instructors of the Korean People's Army (KPA) in Pyongyang, March 27, 2019.]()
43 of 311![People walk past a kiosk that sells snacks in Pyongyang, March 9, 2019. Kiosks like these are a common sight around the city, some selling food, drinks and even artificial flowers.]()
44 of 311![A worker walks among stacks of food at Kumkhop Trading Co. food factory in Pyongyang, March 13, 2019.]()
45 of 311![Girls wait for their turn to perform a dance during the election day at a polling station in Pyongyang, March 10, 2019.]()
46 of 311![A couple pose as they have their wedding photo taken at an indoor swimming pool in Pyongyang, March 13, 2019.]()
47 of 311![A boy holding a toy rifle stands before a taxi on a street in Pyongyang, March 11, 2019.]()
48 of 311![A commuter stands before a copy of the Rodong Sinmun newspaper showing an image of North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un casting his ballot at the 14th Supreme People's Assembly elections, on display at a subway station in Pyongyang, March 11, 2019.]()
49 of 311![Members of a Socialist Women's Union propaganda troupe perform a dance and music routine in front of the Ryugyong hotel in Pyongyang, March 9, 2019.]()
50 of 311![Students participate in a "mass dance" as part of celebrations marking the birthday of late North Korean leader Kim Jong Il, known as the "Day of the Shining Star", in Pyongyang, Feb. 16, 2019.]()
51 of 311![A man waters a pine tree on Munsu Hill as North Korea marks "tree-planting day" in Pyongyang, March 1, 2019.]()
52 of 311![Students read the Rodong Sinmun newspaper coverage of North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un visiting Vietnam for a summit in Hanoi with President Donald Trump, on Kim Il Sung square in Pyongyang, Feb. 28, 2019.]()
53 of 311![A television screen shows a news announcer introducing coverage of a visit to Vietnam by North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un, on a street in Pyongyang, March 1, 2019.]()
54 of 311![In this picture taken on March 5, 2019 and released from North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un (C) waves to the crowd of welcomers uppon his arrival at the Pyongyang Station after the Vietnam summit. (Photo by KCNA VIA KNS / KCNA VIA KNS / AFP) / South Korea OUT / ---EDITORS NOTE--- RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE - MANDATORY CREDIT "AFP PHOTO/KCNA VIA KNS" - NO MARKETING NO ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS - DISTRIBUTED AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS / THIS PICTURE WAS MADE AVAILABLE BY A THIRD PARTY. AFP CAN NOT INDEPENDENTLY VERIFY THE AUTHENTICITY, LOCATION, DATE AND CONTENT OF THIS IMAGE --- / KCNA VIA KNS/AFP/Getty Images ORIG FILE ID: AFP_1E80FV]()
55 of 311![North Korean men ice fish on a frozen lake in Nampo, North Korea, Saturday, Feb. 2, 2019.]()
56 of 311![North Korean women use a pedestrian crossing as the top of pyramid-shaped Ryugyong Hotel, a major landmark in the capital city, is seen in the background in Pyongyang, North Korea, Saturday, Feb. 2, 2019.]()
57 of 311![North Korean men ride their bicycles in Nampo, North Korea, Saturday, Feb. 2, 2019.]()
58 of 311![North Koreans men walk with a background of West Sea Barrage in Nampo, North Korea, Saturday, Feb. 2, 2019. West Sea Barrage was built in the 80s to separate Taedong River from the sea to prevent sea water intrusion into the river.]()
59 of 311![North Koreans walk past a mural of their late leaders Kim Il Sung, left, and his son Kim Jong Il in Nampo, North Korea, Saturday, Feb. 2, 2019.]()
60 of 311![North Korean men ride their bicycles past propaganda banners in Pyongyang, North Korea, Friday, Feb. 1, 2019.]()
61 of 311![A North Korean woman works at Ryuwon Shoe Factory that specializes in sports footwear, in Pyongyang, North Korea, Friday, Feb. 1, 2019.]()
62 of 311![A student sings in front of a green screen during a computer graphics class at Pyongyang Teachers' University, a teacher training college, in Pyongyang, North Korea, on Tuesday, Jan. 29, 2019.]()
63 of 311![In this Monday, Jan. 28, 2019, file photo, a man rides an electric bike in Pyongyang, North Korea.]()
64 of 311![Children walk past a pedestrian underpass near the Arch of Triumph in Pyongyang, Jan. 28, 2019.]()
65 of 311![People cross a road in Pyongyang, Jan. 26, 2019.]()
66 of 311![A man rides an electric bike in Pyongyang, Jan. 28, 2019.]()
67 of 311![A man rides his bicycle as tree branches cast shadows onto an apartment building in Pyongyang, Jan. 28, 2019.]()
68 of 311![A man is dwarfed by an apartment building in Pyongyang, Jan. 28, 2019.]()
69 of 311![Attendees shout slogans during a rally in support of a new year's address by North Korean leader Kim Jong Un at Kim Il Sung square in Pyongyang, Jan. 4, 2019, Much of Kim's speech focused on North Korea's moribund economy, saying that improving people's lives was his top priority and tackling energy shortages was an urgent task.]()
70 of 311![Attendees shout slogans during a rally in support of a new year's address by North Korean leader Kim Jong Un at Kim Il Sung square in Pyongyang, Jan. 4, 2019]()
71 of 311![Government officials perform mass rhythmic exercises while taking part in the first sports day of the new year at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang, Jan. 13, 2019.]()
72 of 311![Government officials perform mass rhythmic exercises while taking part in the first sports day of the new year at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang, Jan. 13, 2019.]()
73 of 311![Children jumprope and play folk games in front of the Victorious Fatherland Liberation War Museum in Pyongyang, Jan. 1, 2019.]()
74 of 311![A man walks past a sign for underground pedestrian crossing as people remove snow from the sidewalk in downtown Pyongyang, Dec. 17, 2018.]()
75 of 311![Men read books at one of the reading rooms at The Grand People's Study House in in Pyongyang, North Korea, Wednesday, Dec. 19, 2018.]()
76 of 311![North Koreans sit inside a trolley bus in downtown Pyongyang, North Korea Wednesday, Dec. 19, 2018.]()
77 of 311![North Koreans wait for a trolley bus at a bus stop in downtown Pyongyang, North Korea Wednesday, Dec. 19, 2018.]()
78 of 311![North Koreans walk on a pedestrian crossing bridge in downtown Pyongyang, North Korea Wednesday, Dec. 19, 2018.]()
79 of 311![A North Korean woman talks on her mobile phone as she skates at an ice rink in Pyongyang, North Korea Tuesday, Dec. 18, 2018.]()
80 of 311![North Korean men walk past portraits of their late leaders Kim Il Sung and his son Kim Jong Il in Pyongyang, North Korea Tuesday, Dec. 18, 2018.]()
81 of 311![Korean People's Army soldiers leave after bowing before the statues of late North Korean leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il during National Memorial Day on Mansu Hill in Pyongyang on Dec. 17, 2018. North Korea is marking the seventh anniversary of the death of Kim Jong Il.]()
82 of 311![Pyongyang residents prepare to lay flowers at the statues of late North Korean leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il during National Memorial Day on Mansu Hill in Pyongyang on Dec. 17, 2018.]()
83 of 311![This is a traffic officer in Pyongyang, Dec. 2, 2018.]()
84 of 311![Commuters ride a tram in Pyongyang, Dec. 2, 2018]()
85 of 311![A man stands before the city skyline on a viewing deck of the Arch of Triumph in Pyongyang, Dec. 2, 2018.]()
86 of 311![A bride and groom walk before the Juche tower and Taedong river on a foggy evening in Pyongyang, Dec. 2, 2018.]()
87 of 311![Pedestrians walk past the portraits of late North Korean leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il across Kim Il Sung square in Pyongyang, Dec. 3, 2018]()
88 of 311![A man rides an electric bicycle as the Tower of the Juche Idea is silhouetted against the sunrise in Pyongyang, Oct. 27, 2018.]()
89 of 311![Dancers perform during "The Glorious Country" mass games at May Day Stadium in Pyongyang, Oct. 25, 2018.]()
90 of 311![A welcoming committee receives a delegation of performers and entertainers from China at Pyongyang International Airport, Nov. 2, 2018]()
91 of 311![North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Cuba's President Miguel Diaz-Canel wave from a motorcade in Pyongyang, Nov. 4, 2018.]()
92 of 311![North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un and Cuba's President Miguel Diaz-Canel review the honor guards while Kim's wife Ri Sol Ju and Diaz-Canel's wife Lis Cuesta Peraza walk behind during the Cuban leader's departure at Pyongyang airport, Nov. 6, 2018]()
93 of 311![Women cross a road in Pyongyang, Oct. 27, 2018.]()
94 of 311![People cross a road in Pyongyang, Oct. 22, 2018.]()
95 of 311![A van enters a tunnel on Pyongyang-Wonsan highway near the city of Wonsan, Oct. 22, 2018.]()
96 of 311![Men smoke as they chat outside a supermarket in downtown Pyongyang, Oct. 21, 2018.]()
97 of 311![A man looks out from a tram in Pyongyang, Oct. 22, 2018.]()
98 of 311![North Koreans perform during an event, as part of the Inter-Korean summit, at the May Day stadium in Pyongyang Sept. 19, 2018]()
99 of 311![This is a general view of heaven lake and Mount Paektu in Mount Paektu, North Korea.]()
100 of 311![South Korean President Moon Jae-in collects water from heaven lake at the bottom of Mount Paektu during a visit with his North Korean counterpart Kim Jong-un on Sept. 20, 2018 in Mount Paektu, North Korea. Kim and Moon meet for the Inter-Korean summit talks after the 1945 division of the peninsula, where they will discuss ways to denuclearize the Korean Peninsula.]()
101 of 311![A view of the sunrise over the city of Pyongyang from Koryo hotel in Pyongyang, Sept. 19, 2018.]()
102 of 311![South Korean President Moon Jae-in, right, and his wife Kim Jung-sook, second from right, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, second from left, and his wife Ri Sol Ju ride a cable car to Mount Paektu in North Korea. The two Korean leaders took to the road for the final day of their summit.]()
103 of 311![Visitors look at bears at the Central Zoo in Pyongyang, North Korea, Saturday, Sept. 15, 2018.]()
104 of 311![A North Korean man looks through a device to study the vision of a dinosaur, at the Central Zoo in Pyongyang, North Korea, Saturday, Sept. 15, 2018.]()
105 of 311![North Korean bride and groom pose for a photo at the Central Zoo in Pyongyang, North Korea, Saturday, Sept. 15, 2018.]()
106 of 311![North Korean leader Kim Jong Un at the Kumsanpho Fish Pickling Factory with his wife Ri Sol Ju in South Hwanghae Province, North Korea, Aug. 8, 2018.]()
107 of 311![North Korean athletes, headed by North Korean Vice Sports Minister Won Kil U, prepare to leave the Pyongyang international airport in Pyongyang to participate in the 18th Asian Games Aug. 10, 2018.]()
108 of 311![Twenty year old instructor Kim Ju Yang holds a North Korean-made assault rifle as she poses for a portrait at the Meari shooting range in Pyongyang, July 29, 2018. The range offers customers the opportunity to shoot a number of North Korean and foreign-made firearms, most of which have been modified to fire .22 caliber ammunition which costs one US dollar per round.]()
109 of 311![Tour guide Ju Hye Yon poses for a portrait on a viewing deck of the Arch of Triumph, before the city skyline of Pyongyang, June 16, 2018.]()
110 of 311![Children perform with traditional instruments at the Children's Palace in Pyongyang, July 26, 2018.
The Children's Palace is a regular fixture on tour group schedules and features arts, dance, and musical performances by children.]()
111 of 311![Students take part in a mass dance event marking the anniversary of the end of the Korean War on Kim Il Sung square in Pyongyang, July 27, 2018.]()
112 of 311![Students pose for a photo after paying their respects before the statues of late North Korean leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il on the anniversary of the end of the Korean War, at Mansu hill in Pyongyang July 27, 2018.]()
113 of 311![A taxi driver waits for customers in Pyongyang, North Korea, Thursday, July 26, 2018.]()
114 of 311![Girls dance in a studio at the Mangyongdae Children's Palace in Pyongyang, North Korea, Thursday, July 26, 2018. Mangyongdae Children's Palace is for talented school children to attend extracurricular classes and a popular place for tourists to visit during their stay in the capital.]()
115 of 311![North Koreans spend their afternoon in an indoor swimming pool at Munsu Water Park during a hot day in Pyongyang, North Korea, Tuesday, July 24, 2018.]()
116 of 311![A woman has her hair cut at a hair salon at Munsu Water Park during in Pyongyang, North Korea, Tuesday, July 24, 2018.]()
117 of 311![A man carries a taxidermy falcon on the basket of his bicycle in Pyongyang, North Korea, Tuesday, July 24, 2018.]()
118 of 311![Korean People's Army soldiers bow before the statues of late North Korean leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il, to mark the 24th anniversary of the death of Kim Il Sung, at Mansu Hill on in Pyongyang July 8, 2018.]()
119 of 311![People leave flowers as they pay their respects in front of bronze statues of the late leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il at Munsu Hill in Pyongyang July 7, 2018.]()
120 of 311![A woman walks past a boy on the street in Pyongyang July 7, 2018.]()
121 of 311![Women clean a square outside the Kumsusan Palace of the Sun in Pyongyang July 7, 2018.]()
122 of 311![Animal specimens decorate a class room for biology at Mangyongdae Revolutionary School, an elite military educational establishment, in Pyongyang, June 21, 2018. The school provides basic all-round education but with a strong military emphasis as many of the pupils are expected to go on to senior careers in the military.]()
123 of 311![People applaud as a seal, led by a trainer, walks past by during a dolphin show at an amusement park in Pyongyang, June 22, 2018.]()
124 of 311![People walk on the street near the Koryo Hotel in Pyongyang, July 5, 2018.]()
125 of 311![South Korean women's basketball players practice at Ryugyong Chung Ju-yung Gymnasium for exhibition games in Pyongyang, July 3, 2018.]()
126 of 311![A worker at Okryugwan restaurant in Pyongyang serves 'naengmyeon,' a cold noodle dish that is the restaurant's specialty, during a welcoming dinner for South Korea's basketball delegation in Pyongyang, July 3, 2018.]()
127 of 311![A South Korean journalist has their identity checked from North Korea officials as she arrives at Pyongyang Sunan International Airport July 3, 2018.]()
128 of 311![Fans cheer during an inter-Korean basketball match at Ryugyong Chung Ju-yung Gymnasium in Pyongyang, July 5, 2018.]()
129 of 311![People walk on a pedestrian bridge with apartment buildings in the background, in Pyongyang, North Korea on June 20, 2018. High rise apartments are a common form of accommodation for people living in the capital city.]()
130 of 311![An employee in traditional dress stands at the entrance of a restaurant to greet customers in Kaesong, North Korea on June 20, 2018.]()
131 of 311![A North Korean woman pauses during a visit at a trick mirror house at an amusement park in Pyongyang, North Korea on June 19, 2018.]()
132 of 311![School children play in a shooting arcade at an amusement park in Pyongyang, North Korea on June 19, 2018.]()
133 of 311![People enjoy a ride at an amusement park in Pyongyang, North Korea on June 19, 2018.]()
134 of 311![Passengers ride a trolley in Pyongyang, North Korea on June 19, 2018. The city trolley is one of the more common forms of public transportation among North Koreans living in the capital city.]()
135 of 311![A North Korea People's Army (KPA) soldier stands at the entrance to a tunnel at the Punggye-ri nuclear test facility prior to a demolition 'ceremony' May 24, 2018.]()
136 of 311![This is a demolition 'ceremony' of North Korea's Punggye-ri nuclear test facility, May 25, 2018 .]()
137 of 311![Kim Jong Un inspects the completed Koam-Tapchon Railways in Pyongyang, May 25, 2018.]()
138 of 311![Kim Jong Un inspects the completed Koam-Tapchon Railways in Pyongyang, May 25, 2018.]()
139 of 311![South Korean journalists arrive at North Korea's Kalma airport in Wonsan, May 23, 2018. Pyongyang has given South Korean reporters a last minute green-light to witness the slated demolition of North Korea's nuclear test site.]()
140 of 311![North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo shake hands at the Workers' Party of Korea headquarters in Pyongyang on May 9, 2018.]()
141 of 311![Wang Yi, state councelor and foreign minister of the People's Republic of China and his deligation visit the Friendship Tower in Pyongyang, May 2, 2018.]()
142 of 311![This is the former North Korean Workers Party Headquarters in Cheorwon, April 22, 2018.]()
143 of 311![This is the former North Korean Workers Party Headquarters in Cheorwon, April 22, 2018.]()
144 of 311![Korean People's Army soldiers arrive to pay their respects before the statues of late North Korean leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il, at Mansu hill in Pyongyang April 15, 2018.]()
145 of 311![This is the Pyongyang city skyline and the Taedong river, April 4, 2018.]()
146 of 311![Staff members stand before preserved 'flat-fish' in a science classroom at the Mangyongdae Revolutionary Academy outside Pyongyang, April 10, 2018.
The academy was originally created for orphans who lost parents in the Korean War, and currently has 1000 students.]()
147 of 311![Spectators walk across Kim Il Sung square as they arrive to watch a fireworks display during celebrations marking the anniversary of the birth of late North Korean leader Kim Il Sung in Pyongyang on April 15, 2018.]()
148 of 311![Visitors by the gate of the Central zoo in Pyongyang, April 15, 2018.]()
149 of 311![People hold a dance party to celebrate the 106th birth anniversary of late North Korean leader Kim Il-Sung in Pyongyang, in this photo released on April, 15, 2018.]()
150 of 311![This photo released by the North Korean Central News Agency, shows Kim Jong-un chairman of the Workers' Party of Korea and chairman of the State Affairs Commission of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, together with his wife Ri Sol-ju speaking to the cast after enjoying the ballet choreodrama 'Red Women Company' performed by a Chinese art troupe at the East Pyongyang Grand Theater, April 16, 2018.]()
151 of 311![This April 15, 2018 picture released from North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on April 16, 2018 shows fireworks being displayed to celebrate the 106th birth anniversary of late North Korean leader Kim Il-Sung in Pyongyang.]()
152 of 311![Spectators watch fireworks over the Taedong river during celebrations marking the anniversary of the birth of late North Korean leader Kim Il Sung in Pyongyang April 15, 2018. April 15 is known as the Day of the Sun.]()
153 of 311![Students participate in a 'mass dance' event outside the Pyongyang Indoor Stadium as
thousands of people gathered to dance in celebration of late leader Kim Jong Il.]()
154 of 311![This is the Mansudae Assembly Hall in Pyongyang, April 9, 2018.]()
155 of 311![Students participate in a 'mass dance' event outside the Pyongyang Indoor Stadium as
thousands of people gathered to dance in celebration of late leader Kim Jong Il.]()
156 of 311![A light show displays a North Korean flag on top the Ryugyong hotel in Pyongyang April 9, 2018.]()
157 of 311![Runners compete in the Pyongyang International Marathon with a backdrop of the Arch of Triumph in Pyongyang, North Korea, April 8, 2018. Hundreds of overseas runners hit the streets in Pyongyang for North Korea's annual marathon.]()
158 of 311![Children fly kites during Lunar New Year festivities on Kim Il Sung square in Pyongyang Feb. 16, 2018.]()
159 of 311![North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un shakes hands with South Korean chief delegator Chung Eui-yong during a meeting in Pyongyang, March 6, 2018.]()
160 of 311![The North Korean delegation of athletes, supporters and journalists arrive in Pyongyang after taking part in the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics in South Korea, Feb. 26, 2018]()
161 of 311![Visitors take smartphone photos at the '8th National Cooking Competition' at the Pyongyang Noodle House in Pyongyang, Feb. 12, 2018.]()
162 of 311![A chef prepares a dish during a demonstration at the '8th National Cooking Competition' at the Pyongyang Noodle House in Pyongyang, Feb. 12, 2018.]()
163 of 311![A foreign visitor stands for a photo with a Korean People's Army soldier in front of a portrait of late North Korean leader Kim Jong IL, at the 22nd 'Kimjongilia Festival' flower festival marking the upcoming 'Day of Shining Star', the anniversary of the Kim's birth, in Pyongyang Feb.13, 2018.]()
164 of 311![North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) released this photo taken Feb. 8, 2018 on Feb. 9, 2018. It shows North Korean soldiers marching during the military parade to mark the 70th anniversary of the Korean People's Army at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang.]()
165 of 311![North Korea put some of its military hardware and soldiers on parade a day before the Winter Olympics open in the South.]()
166 of 311![In this image made from video by North Korea's KRT, military tanks are seen during a parade in Pyongyang.]()
167 of 311![The satellite Deimos-2 captured this photo of Pyongyang today during their military parade, Feb. 8, 2018. On the left of this photo you can see armored vehicles in the street during the parade.]()
168 of 311![In this image made from video released by KRT, North Korean soldiers march during a military parade in Pyongyang, Feb. 8 2018.]()
169 of 311![In this image made from video released by KRT on Feb. 8, 2018, a military parade is held at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang.]()
170 of 311![In this an image made from video by North Korea's KRT, a military parade is held in Pyongyang, Feb. 8, 2018.]()
171 of 311![In this image made from video by North Korea's KRT, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, attends a military parade in Pyongyang, North Korea. North Korea held a massive military parade highlighted by intercontinental ballistic missiles in its capital one day before South Korea hosts the opening ceremony of the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics.]()
172 of 311![A North Korean military guide leads a tour of the USS Pueblo in Pyongyang, Jan. 24, 2018. The Pueblo, an American spy ship, was attacked and captured by North Korea 50 years ago. The ship is the only commissioned US Navy ship held by a foreign government.]()
173 of 311![A 'super blood blue moon' rises above the Ryugyong hotel in Pyongyang, Jan. 31, 2018. The cosmic event not seen in 36 years was glimpsed in parts of western North America, Asia, the Middle East, Russia and Australia.]()
174 of 311![Schoolchildren shovel snow Jan. 22, 2018, in Pyongyang as temperatures were forecast to drop below -2 degrees.]()
175 of 311![Women use drums and flags to cheer on commuters during the morning rush hour in Pyongyang Feb. 2, 2018. The cheering squads, intended to motivate people on their way to work or school, are a common morning ritual in the North Korean capital.]()
176 of 311![A couple ice skate at the Outdoor Skating Rink in Pyongyang Feb. 1, 2018.]()
177 of 311![A group of officials of ministries and national institutions run on the occasion of the first sports day this year at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang, North Korea on Jan. 14, 2018.]()
178 of 311![A mass rally organizes in the Kim Il Sung Square vowing to carry through the tasks set forth by the country's leader Kim Jong Un in his New Year address in Pyongyang, North Korea on Jan. 4, 2018.]()
179 of 311![Participants perform mass rhythmic exercise on the occasion of the first sports day this year at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang, North Korea on Jan. 14, 2018.]()
180 of 311![Children stand before an ice sculpture at the Pyongyang Ice Sculpture Festival, marking the new year on Kim Il Sung Square Dec. 31, 2, 17.]()
181 of 311![This is an overview of the second day of the 5th Conference of Cell Chairpersons of the Workers' Party of Korea in Pyongyang, Dec. 22, 2017.]()
182 of 311![Passengers wait for their flights in the departures lobby of Pyongyang's international airport, Dec. 23, 2017. Despite being one of the least Internet-friendly countries in the world, North Korea's main Internet provider recently set up an airport WiFi network that is available to travelers who have cleared customs. Access to WiFi and the Internet in general remains beyond the reach of most North Koreans.]()
183 of 311![Fireworks usher in the New Year in Pyongyang, Jan. 1, 2018]()
184 of 311![Children play as others gather on Kim Il Sung Square to celebrate the New Year, Jan. 1, 2018, in Pyongyang.]()
185 of 311![People offer flowers to the statues of their late leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il at Mansu Hill, marking the sixth anniversary of leader Kim Jong Il's death in Pyongyang, Dec. 17, 2017.]()
186 of 311![A street in central Pyongyang, Nov. 15, 2017]()
187 of 311![Korean People's Army (KPA) soldiers bow before statues of late North Korean leaders Kim Il-Sung and Kim Jong-Il to mark the sixth anniversary of the death of Kim Jong-Il, at Mansu hill in Pyongyang Dec. 17, 2017.]()
188 of 311![Song Song-Hui (C) sits with relatives gathered at her apartment in Pyongyang Nov. 17, 2017. North and South Korea are radically different societies, one ruled by the same family for decades and the other a freewheeling democracy and thrusting economy, but one thing unites them - fermented cabbage. Kimchi, originally a means of preserving the vegetable during winter and which can vary from mild to fiery, has been a staple part of virtually every meal on the now-divided peninsula for centuries.]()
189 of 311![This Dec. 8, 2017 photo released from North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency shows Pyongyang residents greeting officers of Hwasong-15 missile test launch in Pyongyang.]()
190 of 311![North Korean soldiers attend a mass rally in Kim Il-Sung Square in Pyongyang to celebrate the North's declaration it had achieved full nuclear statehood, Dec. 1, 2017. North Korea's leader Kim Jong-Un declared the country had achieved a "historic cause" of becoming a nuclear state, its state media said Nov. 29, after the country tested an intercontinental ballistic missile earlier in the day.]()
191 of 311![This Dec. 12, 2017 photo released from North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency shows scientists attending a reception hosted by the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea at the Mokran House and the People's Palace of Culture in Pyongyang.]()
192 of 311![In a photo taken on Nov. 19, 2017, a woman and child pull a cart loaded with wood along a road near Kiliju on North Korea's northeast coast.]()
193 of 311![In a photo taken on Nov. 18, 2017, a woman carrying cabbage rides a bicycle past a beach in North Korea's eastern port city of Wonsan.]()
194 of 311![North Koreans attend a mass rally in Kim Il-Sung Square in Pyongyang to celebrate the North's declaration it had achieved full nuclear statehood on Dec. 1, 2017.]()
195 of 311![In a photo taken on Nov. 21, 2017, a man pushes a bicycle past a factory in the industrial city of Chongjin on North Korea's northeast coast.]()
196 of 311![This photo taken on Nov. 19, 2017 shows cyclists passing along a road on the outskirts of the industrial city of Chongjin on North Korea's northeast coast.]()
197 of 311![A man waits to cross a street in Rason.
at the northeastern tip of North Korea, Nov. 21, 2017.]()
198 of 311![This is a photo released by the North Korean Central News Agency on Nov. 30, 2017 of the launch of the newly developed inter-continental ballistic rocket Hwasong-15 on at an undisclosed location in North Korea, Nov. 28, 2017.]()
199 of 311![This photo was released by the North Korean Central News Agency on Nov. 30, 2017 of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un giving an order to test-fire the newly developed inter-continental ballistic rocket Hwasong-15 on at an undisclosed location in North Korea.]()
200 of 311![A sailor stands on his boat in the port in Rason at the northeastern tip of North Korea, Nov. 21, 2017.]()
201 of 311![Ra In-Hae, 46, in her new home, portraits of late North Korean leaders Kim Il-Sung and Kim Jong-Il, hang on the wall near Rason at the northeastern tip of North Korea, Nov. 21, 2017.]()
202 of 311![A woman shields herself from the cold at the port in Rason at the northeastern tip of North Korea, Nov. 21, 2017.]()
203 of 311![People cheer as they watch the news broadcast announcing North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's order to test-fire the newly developed inter-continental ballistic missile Hwasong-15, Nov. 29, 2017, at the Pyongyang Train Station.]()
204 of 311![People watch the news broadcast announcing North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's order to test-fire the newly developed inter-continental ballistic missile Hwasong-15, Nov. 29, 2017, at the Pyongyang Train Station.]()
205 of 311![In this photo provided by South Korea Defense Ministry, South Korea's Hyunmoo II missile is fired during an exercise at an undisclosed location in South Korea, Nov. 29, 2017.]()
206 of 311![North Korean soldiers look at the South side near the spot where a North Korean soldier crossed the border on Nov. 13 at the Panmunjom, in the Demilitarized Zone, South Korea, Nov. 27, 2017. South Korea is reportedly broadcasting on loudspeakers into North Korea news of the recent escape of a North Korean soldier who was shot five times by his former colleagues as he dashed across the rivals' border, part of Seoul's psychological warfare against the North.]()
207 of 311![Vendors prepare flowers for Mother's Day at a flower shop in Pyongyang on Nov. 16, 2017. North Koreans in Pyongyang typically mark Mother's Day with flowers and chocolates. which they celebrate on Nov. 16.]()
208 of 311![North Korean soldiers look at the South side at the spot where a North Korean soldier crossed the border on Nov. 13 at the Panmunjom, in the Demilitarized Zone, South Korea, Nov. 27, 2017. South Korea is reportedly broadcasting on loudspeakers into North Korea news of the recent escape of a North Korean soldier who was shot five times by his former colleagues as he dashed across the rivals' border, part of Seoul's psychological warfare against the North. (]()
209 of 311![In this photo taken through the window of a car, students illuminated by a public television screen walk past the central station in Pyongyang Nov. 16, 2017.]()
210 of 311![People dance in a park in Pyongyang, Nov.15, 2017.]()
211 of 311![This is a North Korean military guard outpost seen from Paju, South Korea, Nov. 14, 2017. Four North Korean soldiers fired 40 rounds at a comrade fleeing into South Korea and hit him five times in what is the first shooting at the jointly controlled area of the heavily fortified border since 1984.]()
212 of 311![This undated picture released from North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on Nov. 15, 2017 shows North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un inspecting a Kumsong Tractor at the factory in Nampo City, North Korea.]()
213 of 311![These two ride a bicycle as they pass along a street before the city skyline of 'Mirae Scientists Street' in Pyongyang. Sept. 27, 2017.]()
214 of 311![Runners compete in the half-marathon in Pyongyang, Oct. 29, 2017.]()
215 of 311![Amateur horse riders compete during the 'Autumn Race-Goers Games' at the Mirim Riding Club in Pyongyang Oct. 15, 2017.
The Mirim riding club equestrian centre opened in 2013 and serves as a destination for foreign tour groups and well-heeled North Koreans.]()
216 of 311![A salesperson of 'Jilin Provincial Muziwu Daily Necessities' of China demonstrates a noodle-making device at the 'Pyongyang International Sci-tech Exhibition', at the Sci-tech Complex in Pyongyang Oct. 16, 2017.]()
217 of 311![Spectators watch competitors during the 'Autumn Race-Goers Games' at the Mirim Riding Club in Pyongyang on Oct. 15, 2017. The Mirim riding club equestrian centre opened in 2013 and serves as a destination for foreign tour groups and well-heeled North Koreans.]()
218 of 311![Men and women participate in a mass dance event marking the 20th anniversary of the election of former leader Kim Jong Il as general secretary of the Workers' Party, which is the founding and ruling party of North Korea, at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang,Oct. 8, 2017.]()
219 of 311![Men ride on a make shift raft to transport logs down the river that divides North Korea from China near the Chinese city of Lingjiang in northeastern China's Jilin province, Aug. 30, 2017.]()
220 of 311![Participants described as 'working people, youth, and students of Pyongyang' perform during a mass gala event marking the 20th anniversary of late North Korean leader Kim Jong Il's election as general secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) on Kim Il-Sung square in central Pyongyang, Oct. 8, 2017.]()
221 of 311![A man shoots an air-powered rifle at a shooting stall on a street in Pyongyang, Sept. 27, 2017,]()
222 of 311![A propaganda troupe perform a flag-waving routine outside the central railway station in Pyongyang, Sept. 2t, 2017.]()
223 of 311![Pedestrians pass through a square outside the central railway station in Pyongyang, Sept. 27, 2017.]()
224 of 311![Visitors try a ride at an amusement fair in Pyongyang, Sept. 26, 2017.]()
225 of 311![Participants of a mass rally shout slogans as they gather on Kim Il-Sung sqaure in Pyongyang on Sept. 23, 2017.
Tens of thousands of Pyongyang residents were gathered in the capital's Kim Il-Sung square to laud leader Kim Jong-Un's denunciation of President Donald Trump.]()
226 of 311![Visitors look at kitchens on display at the 13th International Trade Fair in Pyongyang, Sept. 25, 2017]()
227 of 311![A woman carries a child across a road in Pyongyang, Sept. 24, 2017.]()
228 of 311![A Chinese vendor hands scarves to North Korean customers at the 13th International Trade Fair in Pyongyang, Sept. 25, 2017.]()
229 of 311![A woman pulls a trolley across a street before a taxi during rainfall in Pyongyang, Sept. 24, 2017.]()
230 of 311![Two men play pool at a bowling alley in Pyongyang, Sept. 24, 2017.]()
231 of 311![Service persons of the Ministry of People's Security during an anti-US rally in Pyongyang, Sept. 24, 2017.]()
232 of 311![Spectators gather to watch a public news brodcast of a statement by North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un, before a public television screen outside the central railway station in Pyongyang, Sept. 21, 2017.]()
233 of 311![Dancers perform during the 20th ITF World Taekwondo Championships in Pyongyang, Sept. 21, 2017.]()
234 of 311![A woman stands at a street-side flower stall in Pyongyang, Sept. 21, 2017.]()
235 of 311![Anglers compete during a fishing contest at Pothong riverside in Pyongyang. , Sept. 14, 2017. Some 60 people participated in the event and tried to catch carp and catfish.]()
236 of 311![A man crosses a street outside the central railway station in Pyongyang, Sept. 21, 2017.]()
237 of 311![A girl leans on a lamp post outside the central railway station in Pyongyang, Sept. 21, 2017.]()
238 of 311![Spectators listen to a television news brodcast of a statment by North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un, before a public television screen outside the central railway station in Pyongyang on Sept. 21, 2017.]()
239 of 311![This undated picture released from North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on Sept. 21, 2017 shows North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un visiting a fruit farm in the South Hwanghae Province.]()
240 of 311![A group of North Korean tourists stand before the city skyline atop the Juche tower in Pyongyang Sept. 20, 2017.]()
241 of 311![A North Korean soldier stands on the bank of the Yalu river near the North Korean town of Sinuiju, opposite the Chinese border city of Dandong, in China's northeast Liaoning province on Sept. 4, 2017.]()
242 of 311![Fireworks go off while Pyongyang residents and military people hold a celebration rally on the test of a hydrogen bomb for ICBM at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang, Sept. 4, 2017.]()
243 of 311![This coastline (top) above the barbed-wire fence is the Demilitarized zone (DMZ) separating North and South Korea, on Ganghwa island on Sept. 4, 2017.
North Korea could be preparing another]()
244 of 311![Korean People's Army (KPA) soldiers cheer while watching fireworks during a mass celebration in Pyongyang for scientists involved in carrying out North Korea's largest nuclear blast to date.Sept. 6, 2017. Citizens of the capital lined the streets to wave pink and purple pom-poms and cheer a convoy of buses carrying the specialists into the city, and toss confetti over them as they walked into Kim Il-Sung Square.]()
245 of 311![Korean People's Army (KPA) soldiers attend a mass celebration in Pyongyang for scientists involved in carrying out North Korea's largest nuclear blast to date, Sept. 6, 2017.]()
246 of 311![The sun rises over North Korea and the Yalu river which forms the border between China and North Korea, as seen from Dandong, in China's northeast Liaoning province on Sept. 5, 2017.]()
247 of 311![North Koreand rest on a wall on the bank of the Yalu river near the North Korean town of Sinuiju, opposite the Chinese border city of Dandong, in China's northeast Liaoning province on Sept. 5, 2017.]()
248 of 311![North Korean soldiers stand at a fence on the bank of the Yalu river near the North Korean town of Sinuiju, opposite the Chinese border city of Dandong, in China's northeast Liaoning province on Sept. 5, 2017.]()
249 of 311![The North Korean coastline can be seen behind the barbed-wire fence of the Demilitarized zone (DMZ) separating North and South Korea, on Ganghwa island Sept. 4, 2017.]()
250 of 311![Two North Koreans help each other wash in the Yalu river near the North Korean town of Sinuiju, opposite the Chinese border city of Dandong, in China's northeast Liaoning province on Sept. 4, 2017.]()
251 of 311![A North Korean man brings his boat up to a Chinese tourist boat to sell North Korean products, on the Yalu river near the North Korean town of Sinuiju, opposite the Chinese border city of Dandong, in China's northeast Liaoning province on Sept. 4, 2017.]()
252 of 311![North Korean men unload a trailer on the bank of the Yalu river near the North Korean town of Sinuiju, opposite the Chinese border city of Dandong, in China's northeast Liaoning province on Sept. 4, 2017.]()
253 of 311![A North Korean soldier stands on a loading ramp on the bank of the Yalu river near the North Korean town of Sinuiju, opposite the Chinese border city of Dandong, in China's northeast Liaoning province on Sept. 4, 2017.]()
254 of 311![Korean People's Army soldiers applaud as they watch a screen showing news coverage of a missile test launch, in a public square outside a train station in Pyongyang on Aug 30, 2017.]()
255 of 311![People fill the square of the main railway station to watch a televised news broadcast of the test-fire of an inter-continental ballistic rocket Hwasong-12, in Pyongyang, Aug. 30, 2017.]()
256 of 311![Cashiers work at the Potonggang department store in Pyongyang, North Korea, June 19, 2017.]()
257 of 311![Staff at the Potonggang department store stock shelves with local and imported snacks, mostly from China, in Pyongyang, June 19, 2017.]()
258 of 311![People wave banners and shout slogans as they attend a rally in support of North Korea's stance against the US, on Kim Il-Sung square in Pyongyang on Aug. 9, 2017.]()
259 of 311![Pedestrians and vehicles pass before the portraits of late North Korean leaders Kim Il-Sung (L) and Kim Jong-Il (R) in Pyongyang on July 21, 2017.]()
260 of 311![Awoman stands at the entrance to a supermarket in Pyongyang on July 28, 2017.]()
261 of 311![Steel worker Kang Chol-Su (38) poses for a portrait at the Chollima Steel Complex, south of Pyongyang on July 22, 2017.]()
262 of 311![A hostess cooks clams using gasoline, at the West Sea Barrage beach outside the coastal city of Nampho, southwest of Pyongyang on July 22, 2017.
The West Sea Barrage beach features as a stopping point for foreign tourists, and is a destination for North Korean work groups from the neighbouring area. The beach lies at the end of an eight-kilometre-long barrage that separates the sea from the Taedong River, which runs through Pyongyang.]()
263 of 311![A photo taken on July 22, 2017, shows beachgoers dancing at the West Sea Barrage beach outside the coastal city of Nampo, southwest of Pyongyang.
The West Sea Barrage beach features as a stopping point for foreign tourists and is a destination for North Korean work groups from the neighboring area.]()
264 of 311![Swimmers gather in a wave pool at a water park in a leisure complex in Pyongyang on July 21.]()
265 of 311![A group of men look toward the West Sea Barrage beach outside the coastal city of Nampo, southwest of Pyongyang, on July 22, 2017.]()
266 of 311![Workers repair a section of the 'West Sea Barrage,' outside the coastal city of Nampo, southwest of Pyongyang, July 22, 2017.]()
267 of 311![North Korean women push their cart and bicycles over a bridge in Hamhung, the second-largest city and the capital of South Hamgyong province in North Korea.]()
268 of 311![A group of youths play tennis in a public square in Pyongyang on July 20.]()
269 of 311![North Korean men work on farm fields along the Pyongyang-Wonsan highway on July 20 in Sangwon.]()
270 of 311![North Korean women make their way across a road at the end of a workday July 20 in Hamhung.]()
271 of 311![Korean People's Army (KPA) soldiers walk past portraits of late North Korean leaders Kim Il Sung, left, and Kim Jong Il at the Korean Revolutionary Museum in Pyongyang on July 19.]()
272 of 311![North Korean schoolgirls stop at a kiosk selling flowers July 18 in Pyongyang.]()
273 of 311![Soldiers gather in Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang to celebrate the test launch of North Korea's first intercontinental ballistic missile two days earlier, July 6, 2017.]()
274 of 311![Soldiers watch fireworks in Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang, July 6, 2017, to celebrate the test launch of North Korea's first intercontinental ballistic missile two days earlier.]()
275 of 311![The sky is overcast in Pyongyang July 17, 2017. The 105-story pyramid-shaped Ryugyong Hotel has been under construction since 1987 and was intended to be a landmark and a symbol of progress and prosperity, but the economic difficulties that the country went through forced the project into repeated delays and nearly 30 years later. It has become a major Pyongyang landmark but has never been used as a hotel, as it was intended.]()
276 of 311![North Koreans ride in a crowded electric trolley, which is one of the more common modes of public transport around the North Korean capital July 16, 2017, in Pyongyang.]()
277 of 311![Soldiers of the Korean People's Army (KPA) watch a fireworks display as part of celebrations marking the July 4 launch of the Hwasong-14 intercontinental ballistic missile in Pyongyang, July 6, 2017.]()
278 of 311![A primary school student An Jae-Gwon (10) poses for a portrait during a festive 'children's day' event at 'Primary School Number 4' in Pyongyang, June 6, 2017.]()
279 of 311![A woman stops by a kiosk selling gifts and flowers along the streets of Pyongyang, June 16, 2017.]()
280 of 311![Pedestrians walk along a residential area at dusk in Pyongyang, North Korea, June 19, 2017.]()
281 of 311![Two boys row their boat on the Pothong River where rice is being planted in Pyongyang, June 19, 2017.]()
282 of 311![People walk cross the Pothong river via a suspended bridge while another man is silhouetted as he plants grass in Pyongyang, June 19, 2017.]()
283 of 311![A waitress moves a dining chair at a restaurant terrace which overlooks a residential street at dusk in Pyongyang, June 19, 2017.]()
284 of 311![People are are silhouette as they start their morning commute down a road in Pyongyang.]()
285 of 311![Staff members from a boat restaurant on the Taedong River line up at the entrance as they wait to greet customers June 18, 2017, in Pyongyang. The boat is berthed along the river, which is the fifth longest river on the Korean Peninsula and runs through the country's capital.]()
286 of 311![A Korean People's Army (KPA) soldier gestures as he stands before the military demarcation line separating North and South Korea, before South Korea's 'Freedom House' (rear C) at the Joint Security Area (JSA) near Kaesong, June 4, 2017.]()
287 of 311![Men push their bicycles past the portraits of late North Korean leaders Kim Il-Sungand Kim Jong-Il on Kim Il-Sung square in Pyongyang, June 4, 2017.]()
288 of 311![North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un at a photo session with the participants in the 8th Congress of the Korean Children's Union in Pyongyang, June 6, 2017.]()
289 of 311![An elderly woman follows behind children pushing their bicycle at the end of a work day in Pyongyang, June 13, 2017.]()
290 of 311![A farmer transplants rice seedlings in a field in Pyongyang, June 13, 2017.]()
291 of 311![Former NBA basketball player Dennis Rodman arrives at Sunan International Airport June 13, 2017, in Pyongyang.]()
292 of 311![People watch a screen showing news coverage of the Pukguksong-2 missile rocket launch at a public square in central Pyongyang May 22, 2017.]()
293 of 311![People attend the 20th Pyongyang Spring International Trade Fair in Pyongyang, May 22, 2017. Countries participating in the fair include Belarus, China, Iran, Italy, Indonesia, Vietnam, and Cuba]()
294 of 311![People gather at a street-side newsstand in Pyongyang and read a copy of the Rodong Sinmun newspaper featuring coverage of a rocket test from May 14, 2017. in]()
295 of 311![This is a test launch of the ground-to-ground medium long-range strategic ballistic rocket Hwasong-12 at an undisclosed location. This picture taken on May 14, 2017 and released from North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency]()
296 of 311![Women soldiers march across Kim Il Sung Square during a military parade on in Pyongyang, April 15, 2017, They were celebrating the 105th birth anniversary of Kim Il Sung, the country's late founder and grandfather of current ruler Kim Jong Un.]()
297 of 311![An elderly man is silhouetted against a model of the Unha 3, a space launch vehicle, displayed at the Sci-Tech Complex in Pyongyang, April 17, 2017.]()
298 of 311![Soldiers march across Kim Il Sung Square during a military parade on in Pyongyang, April 15, 2017, They were celebrating the 105th birth anniversary of Kim Il Sung, the country's late founder and grandfather of current ruler Kim Jong Un.]()
299 of 311![Boys play on the sidewalk along Changjon Street lined with tall residential buildings in April 19, 2017, in Pyongyang.]()
300 of 311![Men and women walk along a residential area in Pyongyang, April 17, 2017.]()
301 of 311![A woman is silhouetted against the sky as she exercises in Pyongyang, April 17, 2017.]()
302 of 311![North Koreans sit at the back of a truck as it drives along Mirae Scientists Street in Pyongyang, April 19, 2017.]()
303 of 311![A commuter is seen through a tram window in Pyongyang April 14, 2017.]()
304 of 311![Commuters walk up the stairs as a train leaves a subway station in Pyongyang April 14, 2017.]()
305 of 311![A boy performs the zither at the Mangyondae School Children's Palace in Pyongyang, April 14, 2017.]()
306 of 311![Two elderly men crouch on a smoke break in Pyongyang, Feb. 13, 2017.]()
307 of 311![People walk down the street in Pyongyang, Feb. 12, 2017.]()
308 of 311![A boy runs with the national flag along the Pyongyang-Wonsan highway in Wonsan, which is about 125 miles from the capital and is a port city located along the eastern side of the Korean Peninsula, Feb. 11, 2017.]()
309 of 311![Children of the workers at the Suk Silk Mill sing and dance at a childcare center at the the mill in Pyongyang, Jan. 6, 2017. The mill, named after North Korean leader Kim Jong UnÕs grandmother, is where 1,600 workers _ mostly women _ sort and process silkworms which produce silk thread that officials at the Pyongyang factory say is made into roughly 200 tons of silk a year.]()
310 of 311![Kim Jong-Un posing with the school students while visiting newly built Pyongyang Orphans' Primary School, Feb. 2, 2017.]()
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Turkmenistan
Turkmenistan leader Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow vehemently insists that the country has miraculously avoided the coronavirus, while its neighbor Iran has confirmed over 100,000 cases as of Wednesday, according to the Johns Hopkins website.
Robert Saunders, professor of international relations at Farmingdale State College (SUNY), said one of the reasons why the country has no confirmed cases may be due to lack of testing.
"Willful ignorance can be framed as victory," he said.
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United Nations resident coordinator Elena Panova told the BBC that Turkmenistan is testing everyone who arrives in the country exhibiting symptoms, relying strictly on official information.
However, experts agree that official information from Turkmenistan is notoriously unreliable. Saunders believes there are definitely coronavirus cases in the country and said the government could be working hard to suppress those test results by controlling social media and manipulating death certificates.
Panova also told the BBC Turkmen authorities are working with UN agencies to plan for a possible outbreak, closing most of its land border crossings and canceling flights.
Despite these measures, daily life in Turkmenistan appears as normal. In mid-April, hundreds of soccer fans crowded a stadium in the capital, Ashgabat, to watch its domestic teams play.
Lesotho
J. Stephen Morrison, who directs global work at the Center for Strategic and International Studies as the think tank’s senior vice president, said there are a couple of reasons why Lesotho could be successful in managing their case counts.
He said the mountainous country is mostly remote and difficult to access, making social distancing easier than other more populated countries. South Africa, which surrounds Lesotho, imposed a strict lockdown early in the pandemic, which kept its numbers low and may have inadvertently benefited its neighbor.
Lesotho, like many other African countries, also has experience managing pandemics. Methods such as social isolation and contact tracing are well established in parts of southern and eastern Africa.
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“There’s something to be said for having those durable and resilient infrastructures and having had that political experience of going through an epidemic where at its peak 20 years ago was threatening to destabilize these societies,” Morrison said.
While all this may be true, he still believes there may be some unaccounted cases in the country.
Although Lesotho closed its borders March 10, Morrison said Lesotho’s economy is very dependent on South Africa and the history of migration between the two countries puts into question the lockdown’s effectiveness.
Lesotho is also in the midst of political turmoil as Prime Minister Thomas Thabane is charged with murdering his estranged wife, who was assassinated in 2017. According to Deutsche Welle, Thabane struggles to hold onto power deploying the country’s army while citizens demand his immediate resignation.
Morrison said this may have distracted the government from focusing on managing the pandemic.
“Lesotho is a country that has been prone to instability,” he said. “That sort of instability doesn’t speak well to control over a virus.”
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While experts question whether any of these countries are truly free of the coronavirus, Morrison said what's more important is to make sure they're prepared in case its residents do come in contact with the virus.
"They all have to play the long game," he said. "They may be successful up to a point for now, but their population doesn't have immunity from this."
He argues the international health community must ensure these countries have sufficient testing, PPE and the hospital capacity to successfully manage the pandemic if it somehow appears. Morrison said trade, migration and travel will certainly reintroduce the virus when the world begins to reopen its borders.
"If they want to preserve their low rates, remain relatively or largely free (of the virus), ultimately they have to create the capacity to detect, respond and control," he concluded.
Contributing: Deirdre Shesgreen, USA TODAY; Associated Press. Follow Adrianna Rodriguez on Twitter: @AdriannaUSAT.
Airline mask requirements: Check the policies for 11 US carriers
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Airlines are tightening face mask rules three months after making masks mandatory on board.
Most major airlines have eliminated any medical exemptions to the rule, and several are cracking down on the types of face coverings allowed. All airlines are insisting passengers wear a mask as soon as they step into the airport and to keep it on throughout the travel journey except to briefly remove to drink or eat. Scroll ahead to see the current policy for each U.S. airline. Getty Images
Alaska Airlines
Who must wear: Passengers ages 2 and older
Medical exemptions: No
Prohibited face coverings: Masks with direct exhaust valves, face shields without masks underneath and face coverings that don't cover a passenger's nose and mouth
Details: Alaska website Elaine Thompson/AP
Allegiant Air
Who must wear: All passengers ages 2 and older
Medical exemptions: Passengers with medical conditions that prevent the use of a face covering must present documentation from a medical doctor to the gate agent one hour prior to departure.
Prohibited face coverings: None
Details: Allegiant website David Becker/AP
American Airlines
Who must wear: All passengers ages 2 and older
Medical exemptions: No
Prohibited face coverings: None. Face shields must be worn with a mask or other face covering underneath. The airline says cloth scarfs and bandannas are allowed if they cover your nose and mouth.
Details: American website Daniel Slim/AFP via Getty Images
Delta Air Lines
Who must wear: Passengers ages 2 and older. Young children who cannot maintain a face covering and unaccompanied minors are exempt.
Medical exemptions: Passengers with an underlying medical condition that prevents them from wearing a mask must complete a "clearance-to-fly'' process including a medical consultation over the phone with the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center at the airport, a process it says takes an hour before the flight. The airline notes that it's encouraging those who can't wear masks to "reconsider flying'' during the pandemic.
Prohibited face coverings: Any mask with an exhaust valve. Plastic face shields must be worn with an approved face covering.
Details: Delta website Rick Bowmer/AP
Frontier Airlines
Who must wear: Passengers ages 2 and older
Medical exemptions: None
Prohibited face coverings: Open-chin triangle bandannas; face coverings with vents, valves or mesh; and face shields without masks underneath. Face coverings must fit snugly over your nose and mouth and be secured under the chin.
Details: Frontier website David Zalubowski/AP
Hawaiian Airlines
Who must wear: All passengers ages 2 and older
Medical exemptions: Beginning Aug. 17, passengers requesting a medical exemption will go through a remote medical assessment at the airport to determine whether they are fit to fly and free of COVID-19 symptoms. Those who do not pass or falsely claim to have a medical condition or disability, will not be allowed to fly.
Prohibited face coverings: Masks with valves or vents
Details: Hawaiian website Hawaiian Airlines
JetBlue
Who must wear: Passengers ages 2 and older
Medical exemptions: None
Prohibited face coverings: Open-chin triangle bandannas; face coverings with vents, valves or mesh; and face shields without masks underneath. Face coverings must fit snugly over your nose and mouth and be secured under the chin.
Details: Frontier website Chris O'Meara, AP
Southwest Airlines
Who must wear: All passengers ages 2 and older
Medical exemptions: None
Prohibited face masks: Face coverings with holes, including exhaust valves; face coverings made solely of mesh or lace; bandannas and other face coverings that cannot be secured under the chin; face shields without a face covering underneath. Neck gaiters are allowed if they cover the nose and mouth and are secured under the chin.
Details: Southwest website Matt York/AP
Spirit Airlines
Who must wear: All passengers ages 2 and older
Medical exemptions: None
Prohibited face masks: Open-chin triangle bandannas, face coverings containing valves or mesh material, and face shields worn alone. All face coverings must fit snugly cover the nose and mouth and be secure under the chin and have at least two layers of fabric.
Details: Spirit website Ricardo Arduengo/AFP via Getty Images
Sun Country AirlinesWho must wear: Passengers ages 2 and older
Medical exemptions: Passengers with a medical condition are permitted to wear a face shield, no mask required underneath.
Prohibited face coverings: None
Details: Sun Country website
Sun Country Airlines
United Airlines
Who must wear: Passengers ages 2 and older.
Medical exemptions: None.
Prohibited face coverings: The face mask or covering may not have any vents or openings. A face shield alone does not count as a face covering.
Details: United website Drew Angerer/Getty Images
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